Mutual Life Ins. Co. of New York v. Buford

1916 OK 909, 160 P. 928, 61 Okla. 158, 1916 Okla. LEXIS 840
CourtSupreme Court of Oklahoma
DecidedOctober 24, 1916
Docket6761
StatusPublished
Cited by27 cases

This text of 1916 OK 909 (Mutual Life Ins. Co. of New York v. Buford) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Oklahoma primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Mutual Life Ins. Co. of New York v. Buford, 1916 OK 909, 160 P. 928, 61 Okla. 158, 1916 Okla. LEXIS 840 (Okla. 1916).

Opinion

Opinion by

COLLIER, C.

This is an action brought by defendants in error, beneficiaries named in a policy of insurance issued by the plaintiff in error, on May 17, 1906, on the life of their father, Wallace Buford, to recover on said policy. Hereinafter the parties will be designated as they were in the trial court.

It is admitted by the defendant that the policy was issued as stated in the petition, and that the annual premium due on said policy was $118.08; that two annual premiums were paid by the insured on the policy, which payments paid all premiums due on said policy up to and including May 17, 1908, and thirty days thereafter, as provided by the terms of said policy, and for more than two years from date of issue of said policy.

The uncontradicted evidenec is that on the 30th day of October, 1907, while the policy was in good standing with premiums paid to May 17, 1908, and with 30 days’ grace thereafter in which to make additional payments, defendant undertook to cancel said policy for the reason, as defendant claims in its answer, that the said Wallace Buford, in his ■'said application for insurance, made statements, as to his habits as to the use of wines, fermented and malted liquors, that were not true, and defendant so notified said Buford and offered to return to him, with interest, the premiums which he paid for said insurance, which offer the said Buford first agreed to accept and finally declined so to do, and thereafter offered to pay the premium for the succeeding year, which the company refused to accept.

On the 8th day of November, 1911, the insured departed this life, and notice of such death was furnished the defendant and demand for the payment of said policy made, which payment was refused, and thereupon this action was instituted.

The petition is in the usual form for an action on a life insurance policy, and attached thereto and made a part thereof is a copy of said policy of insurance.- In said policy of insurance, a copy of which is attached to said petition, there is contained a provision that after two years from the date-of issue of said policy, the same will be incontestable, if the premiums have been duly paid thereon. There is no specific allegation in the petition proper as to said condition of nonforfeiture. The only defense inter *160 posed by tbe said answer of tbe defendant is that there were misrepresentations by the insured in his application for said insurance in regard to his family history, occupation, residence, and excessive use of alcoholic liquors. The defendant concedes that there is no defense to this action on account of any failure to pay premiums thereon.

In the trial of the cause, no evidence whatever was offered tending to show any breach of warranties in the application for insurance as to the use of intoxicating liquors by the insured; while the preponderance of the evidence was that there had been a breach of the warranties of the insured as to his habits, residence, occupation, .and family - history, but none of these breaches of warranties were legally set up within two years from the date of issuance of policy, and therefore the defendant was estopped from setting them up at the trial, the policy long before the trial having become incontestable.

Answer was filed in 1913, years after the policy had become incontestable, which was the first attempt of the defendant to legally avoid the policy of insurance on the grounds of misrepresentation of warranties contained in the said application of insurance.

The death of the insured was admitted by the pleadings, together with the fact that defendant had refused to accept the premiums-offered by the insured during his lifetime, other than the two first annual premiums paid; and that the defendant upon notice of the death of the insured had refused, upon demand, to pay the amount of insurance stipulated to be paid by the policy.

Upon the conclusion of the evidence of the plaintiffs, the defendant demurred to the evidence, which was overruled, and duly ex- ' eepted to; thereupon the defendant moved for an instructed verdict, which was refused and excepted to. Upon the conclusion. of all of the evidence, plaintiffs moved for an instructed verdict, which was given by the court, and verdict rendered by the jury for the plaintiffs in the sum of $2,925.18, the face of the policy herein sued on and interest thereon, less $472.32, the amount of the unpaid premiums and interest thereon.

Within the statutory time defendant moved for a new trial, which was overruled; and judgment entered on the verdict rendered, to which defendant duly excepted. To reverse Tu judgment rendered, th;s appeal is prosecuted.

The defendant in error moves to dismiss this appeal on the following grounds: (1) That the ease-made herein was not served upon the defendant in error within the time provided by law and the extensions allowed by the trial court; (2) that the order of the trial court purporting to extend the time for making and serving a case-made does not show to have been extended upon the journal of the court.

In support of the motion, the following cases are cited: Springfield F. & M. Co. v. Gish et al., 23 Okla. 824, 102 Pac. 708; Fife et al. v. Cornelous et al., 35 Okla. 402, 124 Pac. 957; Mobley v. C., R. I. & P. R. Co., 44 Okla. 788, 145 Pac. 321; In re Garland, 52 Okla. 585, 153 Pac. 153. We are of the opinion that the record discloses that the case-made was served upon the defendant within the time provided by extension of time for presenting the same.

In the case of St. L. & S. F. R. Co. v. W. N. Taliaferro, 58 Okla 585. 160 Pac. 610, in the third paragraph of the syllabus, it is said:

“Section 5317, requiring orders made out of court to be forthwith entered on the journal of the court by the clerk, is directory, and compliance with said requirement that such orders be so entered is not essential to the validity of such orders, nor is it necessary that the case-made show affirmatively the recording thereof.”

This holding is contrary to the above authorities cited by defendant, and in said case of St. L. & S. F. R. Co. v. Taliaferro, the • said cases are expressly overruled. We are of the opinion that the motion to dismiss is without merit, and must be denied.

In considering the merits of the cause we are confronted by the contention on the part of the defendant' that if the condition of the policy as to non-forfeiture was available as an answer to the averments of the misrepresentations contained in the application for insurance, that said nonforfeiture was a waiver and was not properly pleaded, and that in order that a waiver may be available it must he specifically pleaded. Grimes v. Cullison, 3 Okla. 268, 41 Pac. 355; Whiteacre v. Nichols, 17 Okla. 387, 87 Pac. 865; Long v. Shepard, 35 Okla. 489, 130 Pac. 131; Davis et al. v. Board Co. Com’rs, 58 Okla. 77, 158 Pac. 294.

The admissions in the answer show beyond question the issuance of the policy, payment, and proper tender of payment of tbe premiums thereon, death of the insured, notice to the company of such death, and refusal of the company to pay such policy, and that more than two years had elapsed since the date of issue of the policy, and the defendant failing to show that within two years from *161

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1916 OK 909, 160 P. 928, 61 Okla. 158, 1916 Okla. LEXIS 840, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/mutual-life-ins-co-of-new-york-v-buford-okla-1916.