Robbins v. New York Life Ins. Co.

72 S.W.2d 788, 18 Tenn. App. 70, 1934 Tenn. App. LEXIS 14
CourtCourt of Appeals of Tennessee
DecidedJanuary 25, 1934
StatusPublished
Cited by13 cases

This text of 72 S.W.2d 788 (Robbins v. New York Life Ins. Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Tennessee primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Robbins v. New York Life Ins. Co., 72 S.W.2d 788, 18 Tenn. App. 70, 1934 Tenn. App. LEXIS 14 (Tenn. Ct. App. 1934).

Opinion

DeWITT, J.

This controversy involved a claim of James C. Robbins and his assignee, Robert L. Robbins, under their original bill, for disability benefits under a policy of insurance issued by the New York Life Insurance Company on February 27, 1931, upon the life of James C. Robbins, for $10,000, with provision for waiver of further premiums and payment of $50 per month for total disability; and it also involves a claim of right of the company, under its cross-bill, to the surrender and cancellation of the policy for fraud, misrepresentations, and conspiracy to defraud, in the procurement of the policy.

On September 26, 1931, James C. Robbins and his wife (the beneficiary of the life insurance named in the policy) assigned all dividend, benefit, and advantage to be derived from the policy to Robert L. Robbins.

By the decree appealed from, the cross-bill was dismissed, the original bill was sustained, and a recovery was awarded against the *73 company for the sum of $400 as disability benefits for the period of eight months preceding the date of the decree. The canse was tried to a jury upon issues of fact submitted to it as made up by the chancellor from the pleadings. These issues, with the answers of the jury thereto, were as follows:

“(1) Is the complainant, James 0. Robbins, disabled as defined by the policy of insurance involved in this cause! Answer. Yes.
“ (2) If the complainant, James C. Robbins, is totally disabled as defined by the policy of insurance involved in this cause, when did he become so disabled? Answer. October 1, 1931.
“(3) Did the disability, if any, you find the complainant, James C. Robbins has, arise from bodily injury or disease occurring before the insurance under said policy took effect, and known to the insured, but not disclosed in application for said insurance? Answer. No.
“(4) Did the complainant, James C. Robbins, on or about the 21st day of February, 1931, set about to practice a fraud upon the defendant, and cross-complainant, the New York Life Insurance Company, and to induce said Company to issue the policy of insurance involved herein ? Answer. No.
“ (5) Did the complainant and cross-defendant, James C. Robbins, on the 21st day of February, 1931, enter into a conspiracy with 0. P. McKnight, who was at that time a soliciting agent of the New York Life Insurance Company, to practice a fraud upon the said Company and thereby procure the issuance of the life insurance policy involved herein ? Answer. No.
“(6) Did the complainant, James C. Robbins, make knowingly false representations, in answering the questions contained in his application for insurance policy contract involved in this cause, with actual intent to deceive the defendant, New York Life Insurance Company? Answer. No.”

At the close of all the evidence the defendant and cross-complainant entered a motion for peremptory instructions in its favor, upon nine grounds. The motion was overruled. The appellant’s assignments directed to this action are that the court erred in refusing to instruct the jury to answer the aforesaid issues numbered 4 and 5 in the affirmative. It also insists that issue No. 6 was improperly submitted, that there is no evidence to sustain the negative answers thereto, and that there is no evidence to sustain the negative answer to issue No. 3. Other contentions made by assignments of error will be stated and disposed of in the course of this opinion.

On February 21, 1931, the date of the application of James C. Robbins for this insurance, he was nearly 27 years of age, engaged in operating a small mercantile store at Doyle. He failed in this business in the following summer. In the following autumn, while hauling stave bolts, he found that he was suffering from shortness of breath, weakness, and nervousness. From that time his condition *74 grew worse, and he had heart trouble, arteriosclerosis, and high blood pressure. There is abundant evidence that he was totally disabled to do work, follow any occupation, or engage in ’any business for remuneration or profit, and that such disability had continued uninterruptedly for a period of at least four months, such condition being the basis stated in the policy for the payment of disability benefits, provided that the disability arose from bodily injury or disease occurring after the policy was issued and delivered. His physician, Dr. Clark, examined him for insurance three times in February, 1931, the third time being on the 25th of that month, when he found that his blood pressure was low enough to warrant his passing him for the insurance, although within a few days previously he had declined to pass him because his blood pressure was too high. Dr. Clark, testifying in June, 1932, after he had examined and treated Robbins many times since October, 1931, stated that in his opinion he was, in February, 1931, suffering from these same afflictions which caused him to be disabled. This is the only evidence tending to show such fact. But James C. Robbins testified that this ill health began about a year and a half before the trial, in the autumn of 1931; that until that time he had nothing wrong with him that he knew of; that he did not know, in February, 1931, why Dr. Clark did not pass him for insurance at his first two examinations; that at that time he was in fairly good financial condition and was operating his store. Dr. Johnson, who examined him on February 21, 1931, testified that he found his heart all right, that his blood pressure was compatible with that of a.healthy man at his age, and that he found nothing wrong with him. lie said that he did not then have the troubles which he had when he examined him in November, 1931, and which caused his disability. We are of the opinion that this is evidence upon which the jury could predicate its finding upon the first issue, that this complainant was disabled as defined by the policy. The statement of Dr. Clark was a mere expression of opinion, not conclusive as a matter of scientific fact, and was therefore more or less speculative. The complainant’s statements were admissible as evidence. 4 Cooley’s Briefs on Insurance, p. 3333, and cases cited; Jones on Evidence, sec. 360; 1 Wigmore on Evidence, sec. 568; 22 C. J., 618; Plotner v. Insurance Co., 48 N. D., 295, 183 N. W., 1000.

The defenses of fraud, misrepresentations, and fraudulent conspiracy arise from certain questions and answers in the application made by James C. Robbins for the insurance and alleged collusion with the soliciting agent of the insurer. As matters material to the risk, they were of serious importance; and, if the answers were false and if this had been known to the officers of the insurance company who passed upon the physical risk, they would certainly have been warranted in rejecting the application. Mutual Life Insurance Co. v. Dibrell, 137 Tenn., 528, 194 S. W., 581, L. R. A., 1917E, 554; *75 Volunteer State Life Insurance Co. v. Richardson, 146 Tenn., 589, 244 S. W., 44, 26 A. L. R., 1270. These statements and questions and answers are as follows:

In part I (statements to the agent) :

‘16a. The following is all the insurance I now have on my life:

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Bluebook (online)
72 S.W.2d 788, 18 Tenn. App. 70, 1934 Tenn. App. LEXIS 14, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/robbins-v-new-york-life-ins-co-tennctapp-1934.