Watts v. Horace Mann Life Ins. Co.

949 So. 2d 833, 2006 Miss. App. LEXIS 756, 2006 WL 2948071
CourtCourt of Appeals of Mississippi
DecidedOctober 17, 2006
Docket2005-CA-00253-COA
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 949 So. 2d 833 (Watts v. Horace Mann Life Ins. Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Mississippi primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Watts v. Horace Mann Life Ins. Co., 949 So. 2d 833, 2006 Miss. App. LEXIS 756, 2006 WL 2948071 (Mich. Ct. App. 2006).

Opinion

949 So.2d 833 (2006)

Deella WATTS, Appellant,
v.
HORACE MANN LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY and Leo Hawkins, Jr., Appellees.

No. 2005-CA-00253-COA.

Court of Appeals of Mississippi.

October 17, 2006.

*834 Precious Tyrone Martin, Dawn Laverne Stough, attorneys for appellant.

Arthur F. Jernigan, Samuel Ernest Linton Anderson, Staci Bozant O'Neal, Ridgeland, attorneys for appellees.

Before MYERS, P.J., SOUTHWICK, IRVING and BARNES, JJ.

MODIFIED OPINION ON MOTION FOR REHEARING[1]

IRVING, J., for the Court.

¶ 1. DeElla Watts purchased insurance policies from Horace Mann Life Insurance Company, covering the lives of two people. The record and briefs, including those of the plaintiff, variously describe the insureds as two of Watts's children or as one of her children and a grandchild. The difference is unimportant for our review. It appears that a child and grandchild were insured. Fortunately, no claim for the death benefits arose. Shortly after the expiration of the policies, Watts sued Horace Mann and Leo Hawkins, Horace Mann's salesman, on the theory that Horace Mann had misrepresented the nature of the policy to her. After discovery, the Sharkey County Circuit Court granted Horace Mann's motion for summary judgment. Watts now appeals and contends that the grant of summary judgment was improper. There was no error, and we affirm.

FACTS

¶ 2. Watts purchased her first "joint life" policy from Horace Mann in 1990. She purchased her second such policy in 1993. As of 2003, both policies had expired and Watts declined to purchase new ones. Watts claims that Horace Mann and Hawkins, as its agent, told her that the policies covered both insureds — if one person died, the other would still be insured until the expiration of the policy. In reality, the policies were "joint life" policies that covered the death of either person, but would not provide benefits to both unless they died within thirty-one days of each other. The survivor would be entitled to a new policy without proof of insurability. Apparently the premiums on such a new policy would be at the then-applicable, potentially higher rate since the insured would be older than when the joint policy was acquired. Watts brought suit against Horace Mann on January 22, 2004, claiming several different theories of recovery.

*835 ¶ 3. During discovery, Watts produced an affidavit by Matthew Thomas, an insurance agent offered as an expert. Thomas opined that the language of the policy purchased by Watts would "lead a reasonable person to the conclusion that both insureds, Antonio Watts and Felicia Watts, would have two separate ten year level term policies in one, single contract." Several depositions were taken, and the policy language was produced for the court to review. After discovery was complete, the court granted summary judgment to Horace Mann on the grounds that Watts's claim was time-barred and that her claim was made moot by the termination of the policies in 2003. Additional facts will be related as necessary during our discussion of the issue.

ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION OF THE ISSUE

Standard of Review

¶ 4. When reviewing the grant or denial of summary judgment, we look at a lower court's decision de novo. Price v. Purdue Pharma Co., 920 So.2d 479, 483(¶ 10) (Miss.2006). In reviewing whether summary judgment is proper, we look at "all evidentiary matters, including admissions in pleadings, answers to interrogatories, depositions, and affidavits." Aladdin Constr. Co. v. John Hancock Life Ins. Co., 914 So.2d 169, 174(¶ 9) (Miss.2005) (citations omitted). When reviewing the evidence, we look at it "in the light most favorable to the party against whom the motion for summary judgment has been made." Price, 920 So.2d at 483(¶ 10) (citing Aetna Cas. & Sur. Co. v. Berry, 669 So.2d 56, 70 (Miss.1996)). If we find that any genuine issue of material fact exists, the decision of the lower court must be reversed. Id. at 484(¶ 10). However, the aggrieved party must provide "significant probative evidence showing that there are indeed genuine issues of material fact" to prevail. Aladdin, 914 So.2d at 175(¶ 9) (quoting Murphree v. Fed. Ins. Co., 707 So.2d 523, 529 (Miss.1997)).

Mootness

¶ 5. The court held that Watts's claim was moot because it was brought after the termination of the policies. The court concluded that, since neither child died while the policies were active, Watts's claim was moot because she had never attempted, and could never attempt, to collect under the policies. We disagree.

¶ 6. The claimed injury to Watts is the amount of money she spent paying for unwanted policies for thirteen years, an injury which is not moot. Watts specifically stated in the "damages" section of her complaint: "The Plaintiffs would not have purchased the policy, or would not have been willing to do so for the amount charged. . . . The Plaintiffs have suffered damages in the amount of the difference between the value of the products as represented . . . and the substantially lower valued products as actually delivered." Therefore, the court was incorrect in finding that Watts's claim was moot. However, as discussed below, we agree that Watts's claim was time-barred, and therefore affirm.

Time Bar

¶ 7. Watts does not dispute that she purchased her initial policy in 1990, and her second policy in 1993. She also acknowledges that her claim is subject to the three-year statute of limitations found in Mississippi Code Annotated section 15-1-49, as amended. However, she contends that her claim is not time-barred because the language of the policies that she purchased was so ambiguous that she could not have determined the true nature of the policies by reading them. She also claims that the court "ignored the fact that Horace *836 Mann through its agents repeatedly represented to Mrs. Watts until 2003 that with the purchase of each policy she was receiving two policies . . . when in fact, Mrs. Watts was receiving only one policy which would expire upon the death of either insured." In short, Watts claims that "[t]he record shows a genuine issue for trial as to whether Mrs. Watts knew or should have known of her cause of action before 2003."

¶ 8. Horace Mann responds that the terms of the policies were "clear and unambiguous," and, therefore, any cause of action had to be filed within three years of Watts's purchase of the policies (1993 and 1996, respectively). Horace Mann also argues that, even if "Watts was told anything different than what was stated in the policy, the necessary elements of reasonable reliance and damages are absent as a matter of law where the policy is clear and unambiguous and no claim for benefits ever accrued."

¶ 9. In granting summary judgment to Horace Mann, the court found that "any claims or causes of action of Plaintiff are barred by the statute of limitations. . . . Watts had until 1993 to bring her action on the 1990 term life insurance policy and until 1996 to bring her action on the 1993 policy." The court found specifically that "Watts had copies of the policies and a 15-day period to review and rescind the contracts and receive a refund. Watts did not use due diligence. Further, Horace Mann did no affirmative acts or conduct to prevent discovery of any claims after tending a copy of the policy."

¶ 10. We agree with the findings of the lower court. The language of the policies was clear and unambiguous, despite Watts's arguments to the contrary. The policies clearly stated:

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Bluebook (online)
949 So. 2d 833, 2006 Miss. App. LEXIS 756, 2006 WL 2948071, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/watts-v-horace-mann-life-ins-co-missctapp-2006.