State Ex Rel. Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance v. Bland

189 S.W.2d 542, 354 Mo. 391, 161 A.L.R. 423, 1945 Mo. LEXIS 525
CourtSupreme Court of Missouri
DecidedSeptember 4, 1945
DocketNo. 39361.
StatusPublished
Cited by30 cases

This text of 189 S.W.2d 542 (State Ex Rel. Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance v. Bland) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Missouri primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State Ex Rel. Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance v. Bland, 189 S.W.2d 542, 354 Mo. 391, 161 A.L.R. 423, 1945 Mo. LEXIS 525 (Mo. 1945).

Opinion

*394 DOUGLAS, J.

This is a suit on a life insurance policy. The policy was issued in 1919. In 1923 insured obtained a policy loan from the insurance company 'which was later increased from time to time and never repaid. -Interest that was not paid annually when due was added to the principal. In 1938 the policy lapsed for nonpayment of the premium. Thereupon, in accordance with the provisions of the policy, the entire indebtedness was deducted from the cash surrender value and the policy changed to extended term insurance. The extended term insurance expired May 31, 1938. Insured died August 17, 1939. It is conceded that had the company charged only simple interest on the loan instead of compound interest the balance of the policy reserve, after deducting the indebtedness, at the time the policy lapsed would have been sufficient to carry the extended insurance beyond the date of death.

The question for decision is whether the policy loan, provision permits the company to charge compound interest under the collateral agreement governing the loan.

*395 Trial was by the court, a jury being waived. Judgment was for the insurance company. Plaintiffs appealed to the Kansas City Court of Appeals which reversed and remanded with directions to enter judgment for plaintiffs. Edwards et al. v. Northwestern Mut. Life Ins. Co., (Mo. App.), 183 S. W. (2d) 359.

On January 2, 1945 this court granted a writ of certiorari to review the decision of the Kansas City Court of Appeals for conflict with our decisions under the Amendment Of 1884 to Article VI of the Constitution of 1875. On March 30 the new Constitution of 1945 went into effect having been adopted by the people on February 27. Section 10 of Article V of the 1945 Constitution provides in part: “The supreme court may finally determine all causes coming to it from any court of appeals, whether by certification, transfer or certiorari, the’same as on original appeal.”

Plaintiffs argue since the judgment in their favor in the court of appeals became final with the overruling of the motion for rehearing, their rights under it then became fixed and may not be affected by a subsequent change in the law. But the judgment was not then final in sense that it was not subject to review and reversal. Review by certiorari was still available. Timely notice was given and timely application • for certiorari was made. See State ex rel. Berkshire v. Ellison, 287 Mo. 654, 230 S. W. 970. Our issuance of the writ to the Kansas City Court of Appeals operated to suspend any right to enforce the judgment until we should complete our review of the case. The general rule is: “ The writ of certiorari takes the record out of the custody of the inferior tribunal, leaves nothing there to be prosecuted or enforced by execution, and operates as a stay of execution . . . ” 14-C. J. S., “Certiorari”, sec. 108. See also State ex rel. Adler v. Ossing, 336 Mo. 386, 79 S. W. (2d) 255; State ex rel. Berkshire v. Ellison, supra.

The new constitutional power granted this court to determine a case which comes to it by certiorari in the same manner as one which comes on original appeal, that is to determine it on the merits, is one having to do with procedure. It is the rule in this State that a law dealing with procedure applies to all actions falling within its terms whether commenced before or after its enactment unless the contrary intention is expressed. Wentz v. Price Candy Co., 352 Mo. 1, 175 S. W. (2d) 852. While the ruling in the Wentz case applied to a statute, the same ruling is pertinent, in our opinion, to a constitutional provision dealing with procedure, although constitutional provisions’ ordinarily operate prospectively only. We so indicated in The State v. Jackson, 105 Mo. 196, 15 S. W. 333, and such was held in Cassard v. Tracy, 52 La. Ann. 835, 27 So. 368 and Moye v. National Surety Co., 208 Cal. 279, 280 P. 982. Accordingly we shall exercise the new power granted us by the Constitution of 1945 and consider this case *396 on the merits instead of merely reviewing the decision of the Kansas City Court of Appeals for conflict.

We turn now to the merits of the case. The policy provision relating to a loan is as follows:

“At any time while this Policy is in force except as extended term insurance, and without the consent or participation of any beneficiary not irrevocably designated, the Company will on receipt of this Policy properly assigned advance on the sole security hereof any amount up to the limit secured by its cash surrender value. The sum advanced shall bear interest at a rate of not to exceed six per cent per annum and may be repaid at any time while this Policy is in force except as extended term insurance. Failure to pay either the sum advanced or interest thereon shall not avoid this Policy unless the total indebtedness to the Company on account hereof shall equal or exceed the then cash surrender value, nor until thirty-one days after notice shall have been mailed to the last known address of the Insured or any Assignee. ’ ’

The assignment agreement executed by insured upon making the loan with the company provides:

“In Consideration of the loan to the undersigned by The Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company, of the sum of - Dollars, payable at its Home Office in the City of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, with interest at the rate of six (6) per cent, per annum, payable annually, the undersigned, as security for the payment of said loan with interest, hereby assign, transfer and set over to the said Company at Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Policy No.-issued by the said Company on the life of-including all present and future additions thereto.

“In ease of the non-payment of any interest on said loan as above provided, such interest shall be added to and become a part of the principal of said loan and shall bear interest at the rate aforesaid. Whenever the total indebtedness to the said Company on account of said loan and accrued interest shall equal or exceed the cash surrender value of said policy, and thirty-one days after notice shall have been mailed to the last known address of the insured, and of any assignee of said policy, the said policy shall, without other action on the part of the said Company, become void and be deemed surrendered in consideration of the cancellation of said loan. ’ ’

Plaintiffs assert the provision of the policy that “the sum advanced shall bear interest at a rate not to exceed six per cent per annum” is a clear and unambiguous statement requiring the payment of simple interest only,' and since there is no specific provision as to when interest is to be paid it would become due only at the same time as the principal. With this premise, plaintiffs contend that the company can not compel the insured to pay compound interest as that exceeds the condition of the policy under which insured is entitled to make a loan, and there is no consideration for such added obligation.

*397 It is clearly established that where provisions of a policy and an assignment agreement conflict the policy controls. . But when we examine the policy for the matters covered by the assignment agreement about the time of interest payments and the action to be taken for failure to make them, we find the- policy silent.

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Bluebook (online)
189 S.W.2d 542, 354 Mo. 391, 161 A.L.R. 423, 1945 Mo. LEXIS 525, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-ex-rel-northwestern-mutual-life-insurance-v-bland-mo-1945.