Coleman v. Olson

• Decision Date: 15 June 2018
• Docket Number: No. M2015-00823-SC-R11-CV,M2015-00823-SC-R11-CV
• Citation: 551 S.W.3d 686
• Parties: Rose COLEMAN v. Bryan OLSON
• Court: Tennessee Supreme Court

551 S.W.3d 686

Rose COLEMAN

v.Bryan OLSON

No. M2015-00823-SC-R11-CV

Supreme Court of Tennessee, AT NASHVILLE.

October 11, 2017 Session

FILED June 15, 2018

Christopher J. Pittman and Zachary L. Talbot, Clarksville, Tennessee, for the appellant, Rose Coleman.

Travis N. Meeks, Clarksville, Tennessee, for the appellee, Bryan Olson.

Erin S. Poland, Clarksville, Tennessee, Amicus Curiae and Guardian Ad Litem for the Minor Child.

Sharon G. Lee, J., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which Jeffrey S. Bivins, C.J., and Cornelia A. Clark, Holly Kirby, and Roger A. Page, JJ., joined.

Sharon G. Lee, J.

When a divorce complaint is filed and served, a statutory injunction goes into effect prohibiting both parties from changing the beneficiary on any life insurance policy that names either party as the beneficiary without the consent of the other party or a court order. See Tenn. Code Ann. § 36-4-106(d)(2) (2010). Jessica Olson sued her husband, Bryan Olson, for divorce. A week later, Ms. Olson, while seriously ill, changed the beneficiary on her life insurance policy from her husband to her mother. Ms. Olson died a few days later. Her mother, Rose Coleman, collected the life insurance benefits. Ms. Coleman sued Mr. Olson for grandparent visitation under Tennessee Code Annotated section 36-6-306 (2010). Mr. Olson responded that he did not oppose visitation, and therefore, Ms. Coleman was not entitled to court-ordered visitation. In addition, Mr. Olson countersued to recover the life insurance benefits. The trial court awarded the insurance benefits to the Olsons' child, finding that Ms. Olson had intended to remove Mr. Olson and substitute their child as the insurance beneficiary. The trial court ordered Ms. Coleman to pay the remaining life insurance funds into the court registry, to account for her expenditures, and to pay a judgment for expenditures that did not benefit the child. The trial court also granted Ms. Coleman’s petition for grandparent visitation. The Court of Appeals reversed, awarding the life insurance benefits to Mr. Olson based on Ms. Olson’s violation of the statutory injunction and its consideration of Mr. Olson’s financial needs. In addition, the Court of Appeals reversed the trial court’s award of visitation to Ms. Coleman. We hold that (1) Ms. Olson violated the statutory injunction under Tennessee Code Annotated section 36-4-106(d)(2) when she removed Mr. Olson as her life insurance beneficiary; (2) the Olsons' divorce action abated when Ms. Olson died and the statutory injunction became ineffective; (3) a trial court, after the abatement of a divorce action, may remedy a violation of the statutory injunction after considering the equities of the parties; (4) the trial court erred by awarding the life insurance benefits to the Olsons' child based on the pleadings and the evidence; (5) the Court of Appeals erred by awarding the life insurance benefits to Mr. Olson without sufficient evidence of the equities of the parties; (6) the trial court, on remand, may remedy the violation of the statutory injunction by awarding all or a portion of the life insurance benefits to either or both parties after hearing additional evidence and considering the equities of the parties; and (7) Ms. Coleman was not entitled to court-ordered grandparent visitation absent Mr. Olson’s opposition to visitation. We affirm in part and reverse in part the judgment of the Court of Appeals; we reverse and vacate the judgment of the trial court and remand to the trial court for further proceedings.

I.

In 2007, Jessica and Bryan Olson were married and the next year they had a child. On July 5, 2012, Ms. Olson sued for divorce in the Montgomery County Chancery Court. When Ms. Olson filed and served the complaint, a statutory injunction went into effect prohibiting both parties from changing the beneficiary on any life insurance policy that named either party as beneficiary without the other’s consent or a court order. See Tenn. Code Ann. § 36-4-106(d)(2).¹

Four days after filing for divorce, Ms. Olson became ill and was treated in the emergency room of a local hospital. The next day, Ms. Olson returned to the emergency room and then went to Vanderbilt University Medical Center where she was diagnosed with Stevens-Johnson syndrome, a serious and painful skin condition.

Two days later, on July 12, 2012, Ms. Olson signed a document that changed the beneficiary of her life insurance policy from Mr. Olson to Ms. Coleman and named the Olsons' minor child as the contingent beneficiary. Two of Ms. Olson’s friends, Jenny Mims and Jessica Steventon, were in Ms. Olson’s hospital room when she signed the document. Ms. Mims notarized Ms. Olson’s signature and sent the document to Ms. Olson’s employer. One week later, on July 19, 2012, Ms. Olson died. As the beneficiary of the life insurance policy, Ms. Coleman collected nearly $400,000.

Less than a week after her daughter’s death, Ms. Coleman filed a petition in the Montgomery County Juvenile Court against Mr. Olson, alleging that her grandchild was dependent and neglected. She sought either custody or grandparent visitation under Tennessee Code Annotated section 36-6-306. The next month, the juvenile court granted Ms. Coleman four weeks of visitation. Later, the juvenile court granted Ms. Coleman four more weeks of visitation. In late January 2013, Mr. Olson filed a petition in the Montgomery County Circuit Court challenging the juvenile court’s jurisdiction to award grandparent visitation under Tennessee Code Annotated section 36-6-306 and the juvenile court’s decision to grant visitation without hearing evidence. The circuit court denied the petition. On February 12, 2013, the juvenile court dismissed Ms. Coleman’s case without prejudice, based on her notice of voluntary nonsuit.

On February 12, 2013, the same day the juvenile court dismissed her case, Ms. Coleman filed a petition in the Montgomery County Circuit Court for grandparent visitation under Tennessee Code Annotated section 36-6-306. Ms. Coleman alleged that based on her significant relationship with her grandchild and Ms. Olson’s death, the Olsons' child would be substantially harmed if his relationship with Ms. Coleman ended. Mr. Olson answered, stating that he did not oppose Ms. Coleman’s visitation, and therefore, she was not entitled to court-ordered visitation under Tennessee Code Annotated section 36-6-306. Mr. Olson countersued Ms. Coleman for the life insurance benefits, alleging fraud, forgery, conversion, and undue influence.² Mr. Olson argued in his pretrial brief that Ms. Olson secretly changed the beneficiary on her life insurance policy in violation of the statutory injunction.

On November 14 and December 5, 2014, the trial court heard evidence presented by Ms. Coleman and Mr. Olson.³ Ms. Coleman, who lived in Massachusetts, testified that she and her daughter and grandchild had a good relationship, visited often, and talked almost daily. In late June 2012, Ms. Coleman traveled to Tennessee because of problems between her daughter and Mr. Olson. During that time, Ms. Olson discussed filing for a divorce and changing the beneficiary of her life insurance policy.

In July 2012, Ms. Coleman returned to Tennessee when Ms. Olson became ill. On July 12, 2012, while Ms. Olson was hospitalized, Ms. Coleman, at her daughter’s request, prepared a handwritten change of beneficiary document that removed Mr. Olson as the beneficiary and named Ms. Coleman as the primary beneficiary and the Olsons' child as the contingent beneficiary. Ms. Coleman testified that she did not know about the statutory injunction, but understood that Ms. Olson wanted Ms. Coleman to be the administrator of the insurance funds for the benefit of the child. According to Ms. Coleman, Ms. Olson read and signed the change of beneficiary document in the presence of Ms. Coleman, Ms. Mims, and Ms. Steventon. Ms. Coleman explained that when Ms. Olson signed the document, she was intubated, responsive, awake, and able to see. Ms. Olson communicated by writing, pointing, and texting, and she had no questions about what she was signing. Ms. Coleman denied signing Ms. Olson’s name on the document or that she or anyone else pressured Ms. Olson to change her insurance beneficiary. Ms. Coleman also denied that she agreed with Ms. Mims and Ms. Steventon to lie about Ms. Olson’s signature.

Ms. Mims testified that Ms. Olson and her child came to live with her and her husband on July 8, 2012. Two days later, Ms. Mims took Ms. Olson to a local emergency room and then went with her to Vanderbilt University Medical Center. According to Ms. Mims, Ms. Olson could communicate, speak, answer questions, and understand what was going on. Ms. Mims visited Ms. Olson at the hospital almost every day, and when they exchanged text messages, Ms. Olson’s responses were appropriate. Ms. Mims understood that Ms. Olson wanted to change her life insurance beneficiary for the benefit of her child. On July 12, 2012, Ms. Mims received information from Ms. Olson’s employer about how Ms. Olson could change her life insurance beneficiary. Ms. Mims and Ms. Steventon were in Ms. Olson’s hospital room when Ms. Coleman handwrote the change of beneficiary document, and they watched Ms. Olson sign the document. Ms. Mims testified that Ms. Olson made Ms. Coleman the beneficiary because Ms. Olson was concerned that if she named her child as beneficiary, Mr. Olson would receive the funds. Ms. Olson was conscious and her eyes were open when she signed the document. Ms. Mims believed that Ms. Olson signed the change of beneficiary document of her own free will.

Ms. Mims denied that she conspired with Ms. Coleman or that she pressured Ms. Olson to sign the document. Ms. Mims notarized the signed document and faxed it to Ms. Olson’s employer.

Ms. Steventon testified by deposition that she went with Ms. Mims to Vanderbilt University Medical Center to visit Ms. Olson and to witness her signing the change of beneficiary...