Review of the causes of action alleged in the complaint and the defendants counterclaim led the court to conclude the amount in controversy did not appear to a legal certainty to be within the district court s new jurisdictional limit. The potential existed for awards of punitive and treble damages if plaintiff prevailed on his claims. Affirmed in part, reversed in part, and remanded to the circuit court. This summary also appears under Tax. When plaintiff's personal injury judgment award was reversed as to damages, the amount of the judgment was undetermined and indefinite at the time the federal tax lien was filed.
Federal law governs the priority of competing liens where a federal tax lien is involved.
First in time is the first in right. Since the stock redemption agreement entered into by the trustor-MacKay and Unison Corp. was unambiguous and the language of the life insurance policies provided that Unison was the sole beneficiary of the policies, the life insurance proceeds remained with Unison and became part of the assignment to McTevia for the benefit of all Unison's creditors. The trial court did not err in granting McTevia's motion to compel transfer of Unison's property as to the insurance policies. The language of the agreement was clear and unambiguous as were the terms of the insurance policies designating Unison as the sole beneficiary. The parties made no attempt to change the beneficiary or to assign the policies to MacKay or his trust.