The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle. — 1868-11-14 (Stourbridge, West Midlands, England)

INTERESTING LIFE POLICY CASE.  In the Court of Chancery, the cause of •' While e. the British Empire Mutual Me Assurance Company" has been heard, and the question in this caw was of a most peculiar nature, as will appear by the following outline of the Cage : Horatio White having borrowed of the defendant I company £l,OOO on security of certain property, I insured his life in the °thee to that amount, depositing the policy sea collateral security, which was, in fact, ' the result of an arrangement with the company, a practice not unusual. Mr. White paid £3OO and shot himself in the side with a pistol, of which he died; but between the time of such act and his death he ' made his will, whereby he gave his property to his wife for life, with remainder to his children. The widow took out administration with the will annexed, and the verdict of the jury on the coroner's inquest being "that Mr. White, being of unsound mind, killed himself with a pistol," and there being the usual • condition for avoiding the policy in case of the party dying by his or her own hand, the question arose whether the policy in this case was void. The form of the policy was that should any person effect a policy and die by hi, or her own 'hand, by the hands of justice or duelling, the policy ahould become void in all cases, except to the extent of any Gotta fide interest therein, which at the time of such death should be vested in any other person for his, her, or their own benefit for a sufficient pecuniary or other consideration. It was argued on behalf of the plaintiffs, the widow and children, who claimed a reconveyance on the ground that the policy satisfied the mortgage, that the case was within this exception, the company themselves heine "some other person haying a bond fide beneficial interest," the company making a profit by the policy, and that the dying "by his or her own hand" was not a voluntary act, and not, in that sense, suicide, for the jury had found that he was at the moment of unsound mind. On the contrary, it was insisted on behalf of the insurance office that this was the ordinary case if suicide provided for by the conditions, and the policy was void, the exception not referring to the office as mortgages, but to an actual assignment. The Vice-Chancellor, after stating the facts, said that, it being admitted that if Mr. White, instead of depositing the policy with the office, had retained it, it would have been void; and, on the other hand, that it was as much a mortgage as if it had been deposited with any other person; the question was whether, the office happening to be the assurers as well as mortgagees, that took the ease out of the exception. A case in substance the same as this came before Lord Justice (then Vice-Chancellor) Wood—namely, "The Solicitors' General Lily Insurance Society v. Lamb," and he 1.-id that this condition was for the benefit of the assured, not of the office. The Lords Justices on appeal expressed themselves to the same effect. With respect to these conditions, his honour eonsideredthat it would be as well if they were omitted :mil the matter left to the general law, which lie believed. laid it down that a Me policy was void on the committal of suicide; but independently of that, where a policy was assigned for value it was not void. Suicide while under temporary or permanent insanity was one of the calamitous terminations which life was exposed to, and the condition in such a case must have its full effect. It was admitted by the office that if instead of borrowing VOW of them, Mr. White had done so from a third person, and deposited the policy with him, the office must have been paid the }:700 due, and valid reason was there that Mr. Wilke, or those claiming through him, should be in a less favourable position because the money was borrowed from and the policy deposited with the office? There was no suggestion that the other property was not ample secutity, and the office had i.ot the additional advantage of the insurance with them. The parties had contracted in such a way that the ..ffice were mortgagees, and Mr. White mortgagor, and he hail the same rights against them as any other mortgagor, and if the office had desired to stand in any other position they should have introduced something on the subject. The policy was therefore valid, and the plaintiffs were entitled to what they asked. As to the question of the meaning of the expression " committing suicide," his Honour agreed with the majority of judges, who had held that where a person killed himself while insane, that avoided a policy. There insist be a decree with costa.