Gaston v. Woodmen of World Life Ins. Soc.

167 S.W.2d 263
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedNovember 20, 1942
DocketNo. 14406
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 167 S.W.2d 263 (Gaston v. Woodmen of World Life Ins. Soc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Gaston v. Woodmen of World Life Ins. Soc., 167 S.W.2d 263 (Tex. Ct. App. 1942).

Opinion

SPEER, Justice.

This is an appeal by plaintiff, Mrs. Addie Gaston, from an adverse judgment entered as a result of a non jury trial, wherein she sued Woodmen of the World Life Insurance Society on a certificate of insurance on the life of her deceased son, William P. Gaston. Mrs. Gaston will be referred to as plaintiff and the above-named insurance society as defendant.

On March 12, 1938, William P. Gaston made written application to defendant for a certificate of life insurance. On March 31, 1938, the certificate was issued and plaintiff was named as the beneficiary. On October 20, 1938, insured died. Payment was demanded by the beneficiary, refused by defendant and suit was filed.

Defendant denied liability upon grounds that the certificate was issued by it in reliance upon the truth of warranties made by deceased in his application for insurance; that said statements and warranties were false and that if the truth had been revealed therein, it would not have issued the certificate sued on.

The court found as facts the execution of the application by the insured, its contents and the issuance of the certificate by defendant in reliance upon the truth of facts stated in the application; that answers to questions in the application were warranties made by applicant; and that some of the very material ones were false. The court concluded that as a matter of law the certificate of insurance issued upon the false warranties of the insured was void and unenforceable. Plaintiff attacks certain of the court’s fact findings for lack of support in the evidence, and the conclusion of law for the asserted reason it is based upon erroneous findings of fact.

The seven points presented here for reversal raise, in varying forms, the sufficiency of the testimony to support the court’s fact findings to the effect that the answers and representations of insured, in the application, were false and that the defendant relied upon them to be true.

Matters material here, about which there is no controversy, are in substance: (1) The application, including the answers of inquiries therein, the laws and by-laws of the society shall constitute the basis for the issuance by the society of a certificate of insurance to applicant; (2) applicant agreed and warranted that all the statements, representations and answers to questions in the application were full, complete and true, and that any untrue statement made or any concealment of facts in the application should make any subsequently issued certificate void.

More specifically, the principal point involved is found in question 7, and the answer made by applicant. All questions in the application were to be answered “yes” or “no”, and if answered “yes”, blank space was provided for explanations.

Question 7 reads: “Have you within the past 10 years suffered any mental or bodily-disease or infirmity, or have you within that period of time consulted or been attended by a physician for any disease or injury?” The answer was “No”. Opposite this inquiry this appears: “If so state which, when and length of time.” Blank space follows the last-quoted words.

The testimony offered by defendant disclosed that it relied upon the truth of the answer to the questions presented in the application, and if answer to No. 7 had disclosed that applicant had been treated for and was suffering from high blood pressure and nephritis in 1937, it would not have issued the certificate of insurance.

Defendant offered the testimony of Dr. Dubose, plaintiff’s family physician, who testified, in substance, that ten or twelve months prior to date of the insured’s death, which occurred on October 20, 1938, he treated the insured for nephritis, high blood pressure, Brights disease — a kidney trouble. [265]*265If the treatment was twelve months before insured's death it would have been in October before the application for insurance was made in March following. Dr.' Dubose further testified that he prescribed for applicant the usual and customary treatment in such cases, such as medicine to hold down the blood pressure and the elimination of focal infection. He put applicant on a diet for these purposes. He found albumen in applicant’s urine and that he was suffering with nephritis, commonly known as Brights disease; that applicant died of apoplexy and that nephritis was the contributing cause; that albumen in the urine is a symtom of nephritis or Brights disease. Witness further testified that insured had the appearance of being healthy and it was true that many men suffering with high blood pressure had the appearance of being healthy; but that a man could not have albumen in his urine and not have nephritis; that albumen in the urine is a disease. Witness said he made the usual scientific test of insured’s urine and found that it contained an excessive amount of albumen. He further said, substantially, from his examination and diagnosis of the insured in 1937, and the conditions he then found, and having seen and examined the insured at the time of his death, he had not gotten rid of the high blood pressure and the albumen in his urine.

The eleventh question in the application was : “Are you now in good health?” The answer was “Yes”. The testimony of Dr. Dubose, which does not appear to have been in any way controverted, is sufficient to support the court’s findings of fact to the effect that the answers given to questions 7 and 11 were false, “in that during the year 1937, William P. Gaston (insured) consulted Dr. Dubose of Wells, Texas, for high blood pressure and nephritis and was treated for same and which infirmities contributed to his death on October 20, 1938, and that William P. Gaston was not in good health at the time he signed said application.”

Under the provisions of the contract, insured warranted that the answers made to the questions were full, complete and true, and that there was no concealment of facts in the application.

In contracts of this character, it matters not whether the applicant for insurance ' considered that his ailments amounted to sufficient grounds to justify defendant’s refusal to enter into the con-tract of insurance. Whether he acted in good faith in making the answers shown is immaterial. The defendant was entitled to know the truth about everything inquired about and that applicant’s answers should be full, complete and true, with nothing concealed. Likewise, it was entitled to know the truth about the condition of applicant’s health at the time the application was made. Sovereign Camp, Woodmen of the World, v. Mendez, Tex.Civ.App., 123 S.W.2d 985, writ of error refused; Gonzalez v. Alianza Hispano-Americana, Tex.Civ.App., 112 S.W.2d 802, writ of error dismissed. Several witnesses in this case testified that as they saw and observed insured during the period of time here involved, he appeared to be a strong, robust man, in good health. Dr. Dubose said, in effect, that insured had the appearance of being in good health, but he also said this was not unusual in cases where people were afflicted as was the insured.

Woodmen of the World Life Ins. Co. v. Davenport, Judge, Tex.Civ.App., 159 S.W.2d 913, 914, involved the issuance of a writ of mandamus to require the court to render judgment for the company on a jury finding. There is a striking similarity between the facts of that case and this.

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167 S.W.2d 263, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/gaston-v-woodmen-of-world-life-ins-soc-texapp-1942.