Ætna Insurance v. Black

80 Ind. 513
CourtIndiana Supreme Court
DecidedNovember 15, 1881
DocketNo. 8066
StatusPublished
Cited by13 cases

This text of 80 Ind. 513 (Ætna Insurance v. Black) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Indiana Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Ætna Insurance v. Black, 80 Ind. 513 (Ind. 1881).

Opinion

Franklin, C.

— This is an action by appellee against appellant, on an insurance policy for $1,000 upon a dwelling house. The complaint is in one paragraph. Appellant entered a special appearance, and moved to set aside the service of process. The motion was overruled, and an answer in five paragraphs filed, the last of which was a denial. Demurrer to the 1st, 2d, 3d, and 4th paragraphs; sustained as to the 1st and 2d, and overruled as to the 3d and 4th. Reply in denial. Trial by court, finding for appellee. Motion for a new trial overruled, and judgment on the finding for $1,210. Proper exceptions were reserved to the several rulings.

The errors assigned in this court are:

1st. The overruling of the motion to set aside the service of process.

2d and 3d. The sustaining of the demurrers to the 1st and 2d paragraphs of the answer.

4th. The overruling of the motion for a new trial.

5th. The complaint does not state facts sufficient to constitute a cause of action.

• The service of process in this case appears to be regular upon the face of the return of the sheriff, and the insufficiency [515]*515of the service cao only be raised by an answer stating extrinsic facts.

The 2d, 3d and 5th specifications of errors, each presents the question as to the sufficiency of the complaint. And appellant insists that appellee’s demurrer should have been sustained to the complaint instead of the 1st and 2d paragraphs of the answer. The complaint is substantially as follows:

Plaintiff complaining says:' That the defendant, ¿Etna Ins. Co., is a foreign corporation, organized under the laws of Connecticut, and has filed the necessary statements required by the law, to authorize her to transact business in Vigo county, State of Indiana; that heretofore, in the year of 1869, the said insurance company executed to Hubbard Brothers a policy of insurance against fire, on a dwelling house, by which she undertook and agreed to insure said dwelling against loss by fire for the term of one year; that said Hubbard Brothers, with consent of said company endorsed on policy, transferred the said policy to Jesse PI. Hubbard; that afterwards, on the payment of an annual sum in money by Hubbard to the said ¿Etna Ins. Co., said policy was renewed from year to year, including the year 1875; that on the 10th day of April, 1875, said dwelling house was totally destroyed by fire; that said policy was at the time in full force and unexpired; that he is unable to file a copy of the original policy and renewal receipts herewith for the reason that they were all destroyed by the said fire, and the defendant ¿Etna Insurance Company refuses to deliver to the plaintiff copies of said instruments ; that after said fire, said Hubbard complied with all the terms and conditions of said policy necessary for him to do and perform, to entitle him to the money on said policy, more than sixty days before this date; that after said conditions had all been performed on the part of said Hubbard, he, for a valuable consideration, assigned said claim to plaintiff, and he, said Hubbard, is made a party to answer to his interest therein. That said claim of $1,000 and interest is due and wholly unpaid. Wherefore plaintiff demands judgment [516]*516for $1,100, and for general relief; that Luther Hager is an agent of said corporation; has an office in Vigo county, and said corporation has property in said county.

This complaint contains no description whatever of the house alleged to have been burned, either by location, form or material; nor is it aided by making a copy of the policy containing a description of the house a part of the complaint; nor does it show any insurable interest of Hubbard in the house at the time it was burned; nor does it show that the house was occupied as a dwelling at the time that it was burned; nor does it allege that the house was of any value.

The complaint should have given at least such a description of the house as was contained in the policy, so as to identify the house as being the one insured, and prevent another action for the same thing, and should have shown that the insured had an insurable interest in the house at the time it was burned. The Aurora Fire Ins. Co. v. Johnson, 46 Ind. 315.

According to the terms of the policy, which is made a part of the answer and copied in the record, if the premises should cease to be occupied, the policy would cease to be valid. This made it necessary to aver in the complaint that the house was occupied to the time of its burning. Ætna Ins. Co. v. Meyers, 63 Ind. 238; Hartford F. Ins. Co. v. Webster, 69 Ill. 392; American Ins. Co. v. Padfield, 78 Ill. 167.

The want of an averment as to the value of the house may not make the complaint bad on demurrer. The presumption that the house was of some value, may have, as to that question, entitled the plaintiff to nominal damages. A demurrer to an answer reaches back and tests the sufficiency of the complaint. And if the complaint is bad it makes no difference whether the answer is good or bad. A bad answer is good enough for a bad complaint. Batty v. Fout, 54. Ind. 482; Ætna Ins. Co. v. Baker, 71 Ind. 102.

But we think the first paragraph of the answer was sufficient. It reads as follows: “ Comes now the insurance com[517]*517pany, defendant herein, and for separate answer, and by way of plea to the jurisdiction of this court over the person of defendant in this action, says: That this defendant is a corporation, created solely by the laws of the State of Connecticut, and not by the laws of the State of Indiana; that the policy of insurance in the complaint mentioned, was upon property situate in the town of Neoga, in the State of Illinois, and the contract of insurance, as evidenced by said policy, was made, entered into and consummated in said State of Illinois, with an agent of defendant, located in said State, and not in the State of Indiana, nor with any agent of defendant in said State of Indiana, and all renewals of said policy were made in said State of Illinois, with an agent therein located as aforesaid, and not in the State of Indiana, nor with any agent located in Indiana. Defendant further says that Luther G. Hager, the person upon whom process was served in this action, is not now nor never has been an agent for defendant in the State of Illinois, but is the agent for defendant in the county of Vigo, and State of Indiana, and not elsewhere; and that neither the contract or policy of insurance in the complaint mentioned, nor any matters or things connected therewith, was made or transacted with said Hager or with any other agent of defendant located in the State of Indiana. And defendant further says that she has never been notified of the pendency of this action by publication in any newspaper anywhere, and that the only process used to get jurisdiction over this defendant was the process served upon said Hager as aforesaid. And that no proceedings of attachment or garnishment has been instituted against the defendant by the plaintiff in this action, nor any other proceedings in rem against the property of this defendant, located in the State of Indiana.

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Bluebook (online)
80 Ind. 513, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/tna-insurance-v-black-ind-1881.