Court Opinion

ID: 9642053
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-22 17:46:52.794349+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:10:42.478722
License: Public Domain

BARDGETT, Chief Judge,
dissenting.
I respectfully dissent. The policy in issue provided for payment to the named beneficiary a specified sum of a “covered person” dies as a result of accidental bodily injury. This is an insurance policy on the life of those covered by it regardless of what the respondent calls it. The matter of suicide has been directly dealt with by the Missouri General Assembly with respect to insurance on a person’s life.
Section 376.620, RSMo 1969, provides:
“In all suits upon policies of insurance of life hereafter issued by any company doing business in this state, to a citizen of this state, it shall be no defense that the insured committed suicide, unless it shall be shown to the satisfaction of the court or jury trying the cause, that the insured contemplated suicide at the time he made his application for the policy, and any stipulation in the policy to the contrary shall be void.”
In my opinion, when the event insured against is death then § 376.620 is controlling when the mechanism of death is suicide; and it applies whether the policy is called a group accident insurance policy, ordinary life insurance, or any other name. I would reverse and direct that judgment be entered in favor of appellant.