There are times when life insurance claims can be complicated by a divorce. This is illustrated in a 1997, Amarillo Court of Appeals opinion styled Sever v. Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company. The issue in this case was whether the oral redesignation of beneficiary after a divorce redesignating the former…
It happens frequently. An insured person changes the beneficiary of their life insurance policy. Here is a 1997, Waco Court of Appeals opinion discussing this event. The opinion is styled, Cobb v. Justice. Here are the facts. T.J. Clark could not read or write. He relied upon Cobb, his wife’s…
Are there ways the named beneficiary of a life insurance policy can be defeated for the life insurance proceeds? Rarely. Here is a 1998 opinion wherein a wife contested the named beneficiary of a life insurance policy. The opinion is from the Corpus Christi Court of Appeals and styled, Camp…
Does the estate of the deceased have legal standing to challenge the distribution of life insurance proceeds? Probably not. This is the issue in the 2009, San Antonio Court of Appeals opinion decided in Irwin v. Irwin. Barbara Jane Irwin and the decedent, Richard Lee Irwin, were married while Richard…
Is it bad faith for a life insurance company to deny a life insurance claim due to an alleged misrepresentation in the application? Probably not. Here is a 1996 opinion from the United State Southern District of Texas. The opinion is styled, Bates v. Jackson National Life Insurance Company. Bates’…
Can a life insurance company deny a life insurance claim due to an alleged misrepresentation in the application? Maybe not. Here is a 1996 opinion from the United State Southern District of Texas. The opinion is styled, Bates v. Jackson National Life Insurance Company. Bates’ children sued Jackson National for…
Attorneys who handle life insurance cases can tell you that the application being attached to the policy is one of the basic rules of life insurance. This is illustrated in the 1994, Texas Supreme Court opinion styled, Fredonia State Bank v. General Life Insurance Company. In this case, the insured…
The life insurance application has to be attached to the life insurance policy when it is delivered to the owner of the policy. Here is a case from the United States Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. It is a 1997 opinion styled, Annette Riner; Suzette Marriott v. Allstate Life Insurance…
Here is a 1998, opinion issued as the result of an employer purchasing a life insurance on an employee and naming itself as the beneficiary. The opinion is from the Tyler Court of Appeals and styled, Stillwagoner v. Travelers Insurance Co. The decedent was a registered nurse employed by Advantage…
Life Insurance Lawyers should find this interesting in case they did not already know it. It is a 2023 opinion from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. The opinion is styled, In The Matter Of Frank W. Gordon; Judith B. Gordon, John Patrick Lowe v. Frank W.…