Ronald M. Byrnes v. The Mutual Life Insurance Company of New York, a Corporation

217 F.2d 497
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
DecidedJanuary 10, 1955
Docket13769
StatusPublished
Cited by34 cases

This text of 217 F.2d 497 (Ronald M. Byrnes v. The Mutual Life Insurance Company of New York, a Corporation) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Ronald M. Byrnes v. The Mutual Life Insurance Company of New York, a Corporation, 217 F.2d 497 (9th Cir. 1955).

Opinion

YANKWICH, District Judge.

On July 1, 1947, the Mutual Life Insurance Company of New York, in response to an application of one Albert Francis Morairty, issued two $50,000.00 life insurance policies on the life of Albert Francis Morairty upon the payment of a premium of $1,484.00 each. Each policy was for one year. In one policy, Morairty’s wife, Ruth M. Morairty, was' the beneficiary. The other policy which is attached to the complaint filed in this case, states that the beneficiary is the insured’s partner, Ronald M. Byrnes.

The policy year was to be reckoned from July 16, 1947. The yearly provision was to be followed by a life paid. up policy at the age of 85 years. In the Complaint filed in the District' Court of the United States for the District of Arizona, Byrnes sought to recover on the policy. He alleged that Morairty died on the 29th day of January, 1948, that Byrnes as beneficiary had demanded the payment of the sum of $50,000.00, whicfi was refused.

The Answer of the defendants admitted the issuance of the policy, the payments of the premium, notice of proof of death and refusal of payment. It denied that any amount was due.

A second defense alleged that the policy wherein Byrnes was named beneficiary never took effect because of certain misrepresentations made by the deceased to the medical examiner.

' In this respect the application which was signed by Morairty contained the following clause:

“All the statements and answers in this application including those made to the Medical Examiner are made to induce the Company to issue the policy and are true. The policy shall not take effect unless and until it is delivered to the insured and the first premium is paid during the insured’s good health; except as may be otherwise provided in any conditional receipt issued. No agent or other person except the President, Vice President or a Secretary of the Company has authority to accept any representation or information ' not contained in this application or to modify or to enlarge, any contract of insurance or waive any requirement in the application or in the contract of insurance.”

After setting forth the answers given to specific inquiries about health, medical treatment, hospitalization, the defendant alleged that the answers were- false in that

“ * * * he had had X-rays, blood tests and other special laboratory tests and his health was then impaired, and he had had illnesses other than hay fever, and had suf *499 fered from bowel hemorrhages, stomach trouble, duodenal ulcer, anemia, and other illnesses, since childhood, both before and after the six-year period then last past, and he had not been free from gas or other gastro-intestinal symptoms, or from dietary restrictions, and • he had, within the period of five years then last past consulted other practitioners, and for illnesses other than infected wisdom tooth and an acute cold, and he had been in a hospital for observation, treatment and other medical purposes, both before and after the six-year period then last past, and. for illnesses other than acute cold, being such illnesses as have been mentioned hereinbefore.”

The Answer then alleged that the answers given by the insured were of such nature that the information called for was presumably within the personal knowledge of applicant and he knew the answers to be false; that the insurer relied on the representations, did not know they were false, but believed them to be true and would not have issued the policy had they known them to be false. They did not discover their falsity until, after the death of Morairty. Thereafter, on April 5, 1948, they rescinded the life insurance policy and tendered to plaintiff at Phoenix, Arizona, the sum of $1,552-.09, for the amount paid for the premium with interest to date of tender. Plaintiff refused to accept the tender which has been kept open.

As a third defense it was alleged that the policy never took effect as a contract because Morairty was not in good health when the same was delivered to him and it was especially agreed in the contract that the policy would not take effect until it was delivered to the insured and the first premium paid during his good health.

On September 17, 1950, the appellee moved for summary judgment. Rule 56, Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, 28 U.S.C.A. In conjunction with .the .motion, the depositions of Doctors Thomas W. Woodman, Robert S. Flynn and F. T. Fahlen were filed by the appellee find answers to requests for admissions as to the existence of certain documents. The Court, on December 5, 1952, granted summary judgment and on December 29, 1952, formal judgment that appellant take nothing by the action was entered.

This is an appeal from the judgment.

The only question presented is whether upon the facts presented by the pleadings and affidavits, there remained a “genuine issue as to any material fact”. Rule 56(c), Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.

In the background of the case is the decision of this court in Mutual Life Insurance Company of New York v. Mo-rairty, 9 Cir., 1949, 178 F.2d 470. That case had been instituted by the widow on the policy made payable to her. On a trial before a jury, a verdict was rendered in her favor in the United States District Court of Arizona and a judgment entered upon the verdict. On appeal this court sustained the position of the insurance company that because of the misrepresentations which accompanied Morairty’s application, the court should have directed a verdict in their favor. And having failed to do so, it should have granted a motion for judgment notwithstanding the verdict. The judgment was reversed with direction to the lower court to enter a judgment for the insurance company upon payment to the widow of the amount of the premium paid on the policy, plus interest thereon.

In view of the discussion to follow, it it well to give the summary of Judge Bone’s opinion as to the misrepresentation:

“Therefore, even assuming the hemorrhages were caused solely by the diverticuli (and this is giving appellee the benefit of doubtful evidence for if they were caused by 'some other illness or infirmity there could be no conceivable excuse for failing to reveal the hemorrhages, and treatment) we are convinced *500 that despite Morairty’s disclosure of the existence of the diverticuli, (1) his failure to disclose the serious hemorrhages which he may have believed were caused by diverticulitis, (2) coupled with his affirmative declaration that he had been free from gastro-intestinal symptoms for the past six years, and (3) his non-disclosure of the hospitalization and treatment by Dr. Flynn in 1944, constituted a concealment or misrepresentation of material facts which were presumably within the knowledge of the insured, and, under the Arizona authorities discussed above, this amounted to legal fraud sufficient to invalidate the policy.” Mutual Life Ins. Co. v. Morairty, supra, 178 F.2d at page 475. 1

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Bluebook (online)
217 F.2d 497, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/ronald-m-byrnes-v-the-mutual-life-insurance-company-of-new-york-a-ca9-1955.