Williams v. Lane

118 S.E.2d 730, 103 Ga. App. 150, 1961 Ga. App. LEXIS 890

• Court: Court of Appeals of Georgia
• Decided: February 14, 1961
• Docket: 38686, 38700
• Status: Published

Opinions

Nichols, Judge.

The sole question to be decided in both cases is whether the trial court erred in refusing to grant the. defendants’ motion for a continuance, which motion was made after the plaintiffs’ counsel asked the prospective jurors: “Are any of you policy holders in the American Fire & Casualty Insurance Company?”

Assuming, but not deciding, that the motion was proper (See Fievet v. Curl, 96 Ga. App. 535, 536, 101 S. E. 2d 181), the question asked the prospective jurors was not an improper question per se. In the case of Parker v. Bryan, 96 Ga. App. 283, 284 (99 S. E. 2d 810), it was held not to be error for the prospective jurors to be asked: “Are either of you policy holders, stockholders, employees of, or relatives of any stockholders, employees or policy holders in the Great American Indemnity Company?” In that case, as in the present case, interest of the insurance company was admitted, and here it is admitted that stockholders and employees and their relatives were properly purged from the prospective jurors, and the sole objection deals with the policy holders, and under the decision in the Parker case, supra, and Code Ann. § 59-705 such question was proper. There was no showing, and this court cannot take judicial notice, of whether the insurance company was a “stock” or “mutual” company or whether it issued contracts whereby the policy holders received dividends. The trial court did not err in overruling the motions for new trial.

Judgments affirmed.

Bell, J., concurs. Felton, C. J., concurs specially.