Equitable Life Assurance Society v. Mann

75 S.W.2d 232, 189 Ark. 751, 1934 Ark. LEXIS 38
CourtSupreme Court of Arkansas
DecidedOctober 1, 1934
Docket4-3663
StatusPublished
Cited by10 cases

This text of 75 S.W.2d 232 (Equitable Life Assurance Society v. Mann) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Arkansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Equitable Life Assurance Society v. Mann, 75 S.W.2d 232, 189 Ark. 751, 1934 Ark. LEXIS 38 (Ark. 1934).

Opinion

Baker, J.

This is a petition filed by Equitable Life Assurance Society of tbe United States praying that a writ of prohibition issue to prevent Richard M. Mann, judge of the Pulaski Circuit Court, Second Division, from further proceeding in the cause of Robert E. Mattison, non compos mentis, by Paul Belding, his next friend, against the Equitable Life Assurance Society of the United States.

The complaint in the cause in the second division of the circuit court of Pulaski County was filed on April 3, 1934. It alleges that R. E. Mattison, a non compos mentis, by his next friend, Paul Belding, is a citizen and resident in the city of Little Rock, county of Pulaski, Arkansas, and that the defendant is a corporation organized and existing under the laws of the State of New York, duly authorized to transact business of life and disability insurance in the State of Arkansas. Other facts are alleged as tending to show liability of the defendant to the plaintiff.

The complaint states that on January 1, 1921, plaintiff became physically and mentally incapacitated to such an extent that he was wholly unable to engage in any occupation or perform any work for compensation of financial value; that the plaintiff has at all times since that date been wholly, physically and mentally incapacitated to such an extent that he is now suffering total and permanent physical and mental disability.

Motion was filed by the petitioner named herein to quash the summons and service thereof on April 23,1934. It entered its appearance solely for the purposes set out in the motion, alleging that it had obtained permission to do business in the State of Arkansas pursuant to the provisions of § 6063 of Crawford & Moses’ Digest, and that it has stipulated that legal process served upon the Insurance Commissioner of the State of Arkansas shall have the same effect as if personally served upon the defendant within the State. It alleges that the policy upon which the plaintiff had filed suit was delivered to him in the State .of Tennessee, at a time when the plaintiff was a citizen and resident of the State of Tennessee, and that the same is a Tennessee contract. It also alleged that, at the time of the institution of the suit in the circuit court, Mattison was not a citizen or resident of the State of Arkansas, and at the time of the filing of the motion he was not such a citizen or resident.

On May 8 motion was filed in the case pending in the circuit court to substitute Paul Belding as guardian and curator of R. E. Mattison as party plaintiff, said Paul Belding having been appointed by the probate court of Pulaski County on the 7th of May, 1934.

Evidence was heard upon the motion to quash. Paul Belding testified that he met R. E. Mattison about the 15th of October, 1932, entered into a contract with him to file suit against the insurance company; that he made a trip with Mattison through the States of Mississippi and Alabama, and finally to Memphis, gathering affidavits as to his condition and in preparation for the suit. He testified that Mattison had a type of insanity called psychosis ; that he had been under treatment of Dr. Wallace at Western State Hospital in Bolivar, Tennessee, and had been paroled; that the parole had been issued prior to the time of making this trip; that Mattison had been in Little Rock, and endeavored to open a business at 812 Main Street; that on account of the fact that his health seemed to be again breaking, or a relapse seemed to be setting in, Mattison returned to the hospital at Bolivar, Tennessee, on the 7th of March; that he had left Little Rock voluntarily; that he is still in the hospital in Tennessee; that at the time he was attempting to go into business in Little Rock he had taken up his residence in that city as a citizen; that he had formerly lived in Little Rock, and had been in business as a tailor; that he, the witness, was with Mattison a great deal of the time, had conversed with him, and that Mattison had sufficient mental capacity to form an intent to make Little Rock his home; that it was the intention of Mattison to return to Little Rock when he felt sufficiently restored.

Dr. W. W. Wallace, a physician of the Western State Hospital at Bolivar, Tennessee, knew Mattison, and stated that he was first admitted to the institution on May 3, 1929, by reason of a previous adjudication of insanity; that he was paroled on August 15, 1931; that after his parole he returned to the hospital September 19, 1931, and remained there until September 25, 1933, on which date he left; that his condition had improved and five days later, on September 30, he was paroled.

The adjudication of insanity was had in the county court of Shelby County, and no subsequent adjudication was had upon any return to the hospital. His trouble was diagnosed upon entry to the hospital as manic depressive psychosis.

Harry Pfeifer, Sr., testified that Mattison had formerly been in the employ of Pfeifer’s in Little Rock; that he had been away many years; that he had returned to Little Rock sometime in the fall of 1933, and that he had.samples, and was going out soliciting orders; that he, Pfeifer, had a vacant store at 812 Main Street, and that he delivered the keys to Mattison and permitted him to occupy the store without charge for a time; that he kept the store until he made a trip down to Houston, Texas, or Dallas; that he talked with him on occasions, loaned him a few dollars at times, which he paid back; that Mattison was planning to put in a store or tailor shop and other shops in different cities, and that he was “going to make enough money to endow an orphanage.”

There was also offered in evidence the adjudication of insanity made by the county judge of Shelby 'County, Tennessee. Mattison was committed as a poor person, no one being' legally liable under the insanity law for his maintenance, and upon proof and a finding that he had been a resident of Tennessee for twelve months or more before he was adjudicated insane.

This statement, perhaps, does not include all of the facts, nor all of the testimony heard in circuit court, but such a material part thereof as to show the issues on the presentation of defendant’s motion to quash, and upon this hearing the learned circuit judge overruled the motion to quash. The sole point in issue, upon this motion to quash, was the place of residence of Robert E. Mattison, the plaintiff in the suit filed in the circuit court.

It is urged by the petitioner that, as the said Robert E. Mattison was a resident of Tennessee at the time of the filing of the suit in the circuit court for the second division of Pulaski County, Arkansas, that court did not acquire jurisdiction. If that were an undisputed question of fact, petitioner’s conclusions would be correct. "We realize that Western State Hospital, located at Bolivar, Tennessee, is a State institution intended to care for the insane in a particular district in the State of Tennessee, as fixed by law. Like most hospitals of the kind, the law of that State provides that, to be eligible to enter the said hospital, the patient must be a resident of the State, and, in this particular case, of the district in which it is located.

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Bluebook (online)
75 S.W.2d 232, 189 Ark. 751, 1934 Ark. LEXIS 38, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/equitable-life-assurance-society-v-mann-ark-1934.