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43 

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OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS 

AUSTIN 

~ROVERSELLERS 

*It*“HLY GENLIIAL 

Bmnomono~ 0. P. Lookhart 

--- 

Board of Insuranoe Collmliarion8rr 

Austin, Ttxar 

ptar Sir: 

policies to persons 

n mtmbtrs holdirq 

iit otrtitlcotts, 

ion to pour lttttr of 3bm 

&ion and rtqutstirAg the 

. Also in your letter you 

such aooltty may issue health 

II (a) vhost llvts are l.nl3ur.d 

em art not 80 Insured. 

pollolts vithout death btntflts? 

Artiolt 4320, Vernon’s Annotated Civil Statutes, 

provides; 
Bmblt 0. P. LooMart, P8gt 2 

“Art, 4820. ?mtou1 Btnofit Sooioties 

D@fLWd 

Aa oorpor 7 a l tioolot7, o a , 0rd.r or rolulak~ 

8ssoolAtloa, tithout aaplkl stook, cwgaal&d aad 

oarlod oa 501.17 so? the mutual bolmtit of Its momhors rti ttwir btwfloisxlos, ud not for profit, 

l bd bvlag 8 rod@ 5 tom mad lwpnsontatlvo form 

of govoammtat, or vh r oh lirits its msabeship to l 

soortt fratoralt7 haviag a 1-o s7stem Md r.pr.- 

sentstivo fora of gwtrnmtnt, rad vhlob shall make 

provision for the payment of btntflts in sooordmoo 

vith btotion 4 hsrtof, is horob dro1ar.d to k l 

Frsttrnal Btnoflt Soolotj.” 

Arfiolo 4824, v. A. c. 9. providmsr 

‘Subseo. 1. tvor7 5001tt7 traasaotlng bu8aless 

under this Aot shall provldo for tht psymtnts of 

btneflts upon the death of Its members l lthor vlthln 

4 twm of pars or at a ny ttmt, l kd ~7 provide for 

bemilts pa-b10 upon its mtmbtrt rttohbg sovont7 

ytsrs of tgt, end ms7 also provide, for tht payment 

of bamflts 1x1 owe of total mad ptrmarunt disability, 

and -7 provide also ior the pa t 

tht tvont of ttmporaq dlsrblli rof benefits in 

7 and for monumtnts 

or tombstones to tht mamor7 of its dootsstd mombors, 

aId for tht prpwat or funtnl btntfits. 

‘Subsoo. 2. An7 soolot7 mm7 a100 sntor into 

oontrrots la suoh othtr forms and granting suoh 

btneflts as its lrvs ma7 l uthorixe vhon it shall 

provldt for the l ooumlatioa and mint-o of 

assets roqulmd for tho pqment of pooh boatfits 

vhtn valued upon an lntrrost bssis sot l xoeeding 

r0t.w (I$) ptr otnt ptr tnnum tnd mortalit staadl rds sdopted b7 it vlthin the llmitatlons proridad 

la the ststutos rtlating to FMtWn81 Boatilt 

Sooiot~os, or rt tho option of the soalot7 la 

tht st8tutos relstitq to lift lasulwlot OoallpMits.s 

Artlolt 4825 of said sktutt, provldotr 

Vhat any mtonul Beluflt Sooloty l uthorlrod 

to do busintss ln this Statt me7 prwldo in lto lavs, 
gonorrblt 0. P. ~ookhwt, page 3 

in addition to 0th~ bentilts providtd for thoroin, 

for Iasuunot, umult105, or for i~uruaoo and aanultiss, \Iporr the llvos of ohildren at w l 

uponthoQVplIoatIonof sa#adlAltpenonnatod Y' 

to or Iatonoted la uld ahlld as the lws of suoh 

soolot7 m7 prwlde. Aq suoh soolet7 r7 at Its 

optioa orgaalso a& opt?ae b=noho~for,8uohohIldron and mmbe~shl 

thortla oh11 aot & 

la looal ledges, upd laltLItian 

NquIrodofmaohohildron,noz 

ah11 th.7 ht. a4 voIoe In the mMgom.nt of th. 

5001tt7." 

follovsr 

Artlolt 4834 of said statute prwldu in psrt as 

"IWry osrtlfloato issued w a4 suoh sooloty 

rhll speoiiJ t& amount of benefit $rovidod thereby, 

erd 8hll provldo t&t ths otrtlfleate, the ohartor 

or l t10105 of lnooxpolutIon or, If a voluntary assooiation, ths rrtiolos of 4rrsooI4tIon, the oonstltutlon a4 lava of the sooIot7, sld the l ppllar;tIon 

for membershIp end modIon l xamInatlon, signed b7 tht 

spplloant, bnd all amendments to oaoh theroof, shall 

constltutt the l g r ttmbetween tnt tht sooltt7, dad 

tht me&or, and ooplts of tht samo, oortlflod w ths 

storttsry of tht soolot~, or oomspoodiag offlotr, 

ah411 bo rooolvod In ovldtnoo of the tenw a.M oonditlons thtnof. . . " 

Artiole 4838 of said statuto relating to and authorIsIng tht organIsrtlon rad fonmtlon of fntornB1 DamfIt 

8ooIo8Its oontains tht provision “vhan a4 domtstlo sooloty 

shall bvo dlsoontinuod business for the poxWd of one yur, 

or bar loss than four hundred mtmbtrs, Its ohutor shall koomt null and void.' A sImIlar provlslon oontalnod in Artlolt 

4852 rtlatIng to the l xa$artIon of suoh domestio soolotlos, 

oontslns the provision, . . . or vhonevor uty domostio sooltty, 

sfttr ths ucistenoo of ona psr or more, shall hrvo a mamborshlp 

ot loss than four hundred, . . . said Comslssloaer 887 pnstnt 

the faots nlrting thento to the Attomw Otnowl, . . ." 

Vohavt quoted rbwotht ~torIalrrtlolos OFprovlslons thtroof 4oomod ~ooasary In an8wHng 
Ecmorsblo 0. f. lnokbart, Psgt 4 

-tomal Baafit SooIot7 opmtlry U&OF Chapter 8, Title 78 

of arid statutes Is on. vhloh mkes prorislan for tho pmnt 

#f bumfIt in 8000rdaao@ tith the pFovi51mo of ArtInSle 4824, 

Furthar, wla soolot 

gzit of Ifs yllbrr) ud T 

Is 0aml.d OQ 501.17 for th. mltua1 

he* buamfIoirrI~s. 

The last above quoted rrtiolm prorides that suoh 

~oolotiu awl prwldo for the p8 t 

death Of I~b@rS. Addltl~l Et 

of hawflts m tb 

fits l aw thozwftw 

de;;gmted but uoh ipllovlng the use of ti vords -2 or mzm 

-* 

It Is a fsmillar ml0 of oanrrtruotlon tMt vhem 

both swul8torp and dlreotom verbs are us02 in tho saw sktuto 

or stnttnoe of a sfiatute, It Is l faIr iaferuaoa that the kglslsture rwlirod tho dlfforsnot In moanlag, arnl lntondod that tho 

verbs used should oarry vlth them their ordlorry maaaings, 

Su$u#land Statutory Construction, Vol. 3, Par. 582l, P. 116, 

. 

In 1917 the 35th Leglslaturo passed an Aot dtslgned 

to proride vhole faaiIl7 proteotlon for members of Fraternal 

BentSIt SooIetl~s. Scotlon 1 of thst hot rovidod 

such soolet7 authorlsed to do busImss in ? 

that l ng 

his State or oporsting oa tht lodge plan ma7 prorldo in its oonstltutlon and b7- 

lmrS# 'In sddltlun to other benefit8 prwidod for thorda, for 

tht psymont of duth or annuity b@ofit upon th+ liras of ohildry bdivttn age5 of tvo 5.d tightoui pm5 . . ., rw who50 

support ud mlntexnnoe s member of suoh soolef 

(AI%. 4825, 8. C. s., 1925) This Art1010 ns 3 

Is ~spcuulblt." 

ater l mdod b7 

ths 41st Liglslatw, Aots 1929, vlth the rtatod purpose Of 

1Utm~lIaiag juvanlle benefits and as unmxlsd, rwds so rbovo 

. 

Where Cozxsorl7, the LegIslrtuve axtondod tho 

authority of oertsin sooIetIos to prwId8 for the pqment of 

duth OS umuitf benoflts upon tha llvos of ahlldrmn betveon 

the ages of tvo aad elghtoon para of mmliflod mambors our 

w&~~s~t~o~~,; ypgJ$y&qpgg$f q$g&gg 

mnulties, or for lnsuranoo snd smmitios, upon llvos of 0hIldrZ 

'~p$&~&t%~p%$t?$ !z %%a?%~~~~r%dt.m 
Raorrblo 0. P. Loolchti, Psgo 5 

. 

It ir qp&rupt from the fobs 

tm Logisl~tw, iaaofrr as the lmfs 0 r 

lng wathorlties tbt 

the sooIot7 mm7 proddo, brr orde no dIstInotlon ktvooa juvotiles of say age and 

sdult msmbrs. ~*xwaFO,urox8mIMtIon of the 0rigLnrlAot 

of 19lS, dlsol~~es that buwfiol~l membership in l ny suoh soolety 

~5 l xto~iblo to any porsoa not 1055 than slxtun 

l nd no t mo r e than six t7 yurs of a g o . 

113, 800. 7) This provtsloa, hovwor, ns repulod by the rots 

of 1931, 42rd Leg., ch. 48. 

~XA thh 5me A0t 0f 1931 vtriah mthd 800ti0n 7 0s 

tht origin81 l4v, the right 0s juvtnil0 membership is ~oq&td 

ir, the r0iiovi~ lmguago 940 mtmber uador sixtwn 

& a *, lvo io e or to t. In tb a nwmgwsa t of a la 5o o d.r J. = a 

4822, V. A. C. 9.) 

( k t. 

Ansmrbg the questions propounded, thortfoxw, It 

15 our 

3 

lnloatbtaFntozmalB080flt 

, 

~~~~~83 

Tit10 78, V. A. C. s., 

Soaloty operating under 

is not l uthor1z.d to Irsuo 

rooldont pollolts to p8rsoas not mtmbers of the 

The ttnu "mtmber5" msy iaolude l juvuxllt 0s any agt 

aliglbl; und#r the 1~s of tht society. 

It neotss~rll~ follow, in vlm~ 0s the r02-t 

that the term ‘four hundred members” wed in Artlole f 

oing, 

838, 

8totion 4 ad Artiole 4852, R. C. b., 1913, -SOUP hundred 

members holding duth banefit oertlfloatu to ths oxolusion of 

cry other ~OXWLL