The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1907-11-12
INACCURATE
Company Falls Back on
Technicalities to Es-
cape Liability
JOKER IN SCHEDULES
Character of Corporation
Seeking to Sell City
Imperfect Plant

- 49, = @S@%-N
Through the efforts OF Samuel
Adelstein, private citizen, the
nature OF the business being
done by the California title, in
surance and trust company is
being well aired and the char
aeter OF the corporation seeking
to impose its imperfect plant
upon the city for use as oficial
record OF the status OF titles IS
being pitilessly revealed. He and
others who have had unfortu-
nate experience with the surety
company are making good their
assertions that It IS an insurance
company which does not insure:
q surety firm which does not pay
II il can avoid responsibility on
a technicality-and the policies
issued give ample opportunity
for such avoidance, says Ade,-
stein. He has unearthed a case.
which, he says, IS only one OF
many. in which when the ceru-
Pany was brought to the law re-
sort was had to miserable tech
Ricality unworthy OF an honest
business firm.
Policy Proves Useless
The particular case 10 which
Adelstein calls attention is that OF a
suit brought IN 1899 By Henry Z.
Bothin against the California title
insurance and trust company 10 re-
cover on q $4,000 pol.cv. issued by
the defendant. damages on account OF
q defect IN the title which the COM
psny insured Bothin took his case
10 the superior court and ii was de-
cided against him. not because the
company did not make the error. bu.
because OF clause slipped into the
policy which nulIifed its terms and
rendered Il unsvafling as q guarantee
against defects. the possibility OF
which was the reason for buying the
insurance n other words. n. policy
was good as long as Il was not
needed. but proved useless when
defect developed IN the title and
drove the insurer TO the company for
protection
Feeling sure ot The justice OF his
claim for s1o.oee damages. Bothin ap-
pesled his case 70 the supreme court
OF the state There & stElI remains
undecided and q moral TO policy buy
ers TO read their contracts with the
California title insurance and trust
company and find out If. after All.
they are insured against defects IN
title" the apprehension for which IN
sps-ed them 20 take out . surety con-
tract
JOKER IN SCHEDULE
Here IS the Bothin case IN brief:
Bothin applied for q policy on beach
and water lots Il and - IN March.
1890. At the same time he executed
q contract with the Sharon estate 10
purchase the lots and applied for
loan OF 5000 from the san Francisco
savings union. The latter advanced
the money and took the insurance
cOmpanys policy as guarantee that
title 70 the property was without
naw
The following good faith clause in
the policy received BY Bothin from
the California title insurance and
trust company was relied ura1n by
Bothin as evidence thar he was pro-
tested IN the purchase OF the land
and that he owned . straight strip Of
land from one street % another.
The California title insurance and
trust company doth hereby covenant
that il viii indemnify and insure
Henry E Bothin from All loss not ex-
ceeding sl9.eee. which he shall sus-
tain by reason OF defects in the title
OF the assured or By reason OF liens
OF membranes affecting the same.
excepting only such as are specified
in schedule B
Schedule B would appear. according
70 the papers fled IN the subsequent
suit 70 be sort OF sponge which ruas
out all that the policy IS supposed 10
guarantee ..Yon have 81 says the
affirmative side Of the paper. You
have II not says schedule B Here is
ConInued on Page 3, Column