Davis v. Travelers Ins. Co.

• Decision Date: 13 April 1972
• Docket Number: No. 54794,54794
• Citation: 196 N.W.2d 526
• Parties: Catherine DAVIS, Appellee, v. TRAVELERS INSURANCE COMPANY and Susan Marie Davis, Executor of the Estate of Donald Allen Davis, Deceased, Appellants.
• Court: Iowa Supreme Court

Page 526

196 N.W.2d 526

Catherine DAVIS, Appellee, v. TRAVELERS INSURANCE COMPANY and Susan Marie Davis, Executor of the Estate of Donald Allen Davis, Deceased, Appellants.

No. 54794.

Supreme Court of Iowa.

April 13, 1972.

Roland D. Peddicord, Des Moines, for appellant Susan Marie Davis.

Ronald W. Feilmeyer, Atlantic, for appellee.

MOORE, Chief Justice.

Defendant-executor appeals from the trial court's overruling of her special appearance and the summary judgment allowing plaintiff the proceeds of a group life insurance policy. We affirm.

In May 1963 Donald Allen Davis commenced working as a route salesman for Pepsi-Cola General Bottlers Inc., in Des Moines. He was then married to Catherine Davis, plaintiff here. They had four children. By virtue of this employment and union membership, Davis became eligible for Class 2 group life insurance under the blanket policy of Pepsi with Travelers Insurance Company. Coverage was for $3000 with double indemnity in case of accidental death. In June 1963 Davis executed a designation of beneficiary form at the office of his employer. He designated Catherine Davis as beneficiary and never changed that designation. On September 24, 1964 plaintiff was granted a divorce from Davis. The decree, which bore Davis' written approval, included a provision he was to 'keep up the life insurance he now has or insurance in comparable amount with the children and the plaintiff as beneficiaries. * * *.' On November 2, 1964, Davis married Susan Marie Leo. Following renegotiation a successor blanket group insurance policy with substantially the same provisions was issued by Travelers to Pepsi in May 1968. It contained this same bold print provision as written in the first policy: 'Beneficiary--the Beneficiary designated by the Employee in writing and filed at the office of the Employer where the records of the insurance are maintained.' It also reserved to the employee a right to change of beneficiary and stated: 'Any Employee insured hereunder may at any time designate a new beneficiary for the indemnity for loss of life by filing with the Employer a written request for such change on forms satisfactory to the Company, but such change shall become effective only upon receipt of such request at the Office of the Employer where the records of the Employees' insurance under this policy are maintained.'

In June 1969, Davis was promoted to a non-union managerial position. He thereupon became eligible for Class 3 group life insurance benefits of $13,500 with the same double indemnity provision.

On September 13, 1969, Davis died as a result of accidental drowning. Catherine Davis claimed the insurance proceeds as the designated beneficiary. Susan Marie Davis claimed the proceeds as executor of the Davis estate, contending the 1963 beneficiary designation was not effective. She was appointed executor in Polk County District Court on September 25, 1969. Faced with these conflicting claims Travelers refused to pay.

Plaintiff brought this action in the county of her residence, Cass, on October 18, 1969. She demanded judgment against Travelers for $27,000 and declaratory judgment against defendant estate finding the estate had no interest or valid claim to the proceeds of the policy.

Defendant Travelers Insurance Company entered a general appearance. Defendant-executor appeared specially to challenge the jurisdiction of the Cass County District Court and moved for dismissal of the action. Executor maintained the determination of the beneficiary was a matter involved in the administration of decedent's estate. She asserted Code section 633.13 was controlling and that only Polk County District Court had jurisdiction. The lower court overruled the special appearance. This gives rise to executor's first assigned error which will be discussed infra.

Following adverse ruling on her special appearance defendant-executor filed answer admitting the existence of the insurance policy but denied plaintiff was the beneficiary thereunder. Executor alleged the estate was entitled to the benefits. She filed a cross-petition against Travelers demanding declaratory judgment denying plaintiff's claim and establishing the estate as beneficiary. By proper pleadings Travelers then admitted liability for death benefits of $27,000 and asked the court to adjudicate the legal beneficiary.

January 30, 1970, the discovery deposition of William J. Houghton, Jr., Pepsi-Cola's Des Moines office manager was taken by all the parties. A true copy thereof was filed in the lower court.

April 20, 1970 plaintiff moved for summary judgment. Plaintiff recited: (1) a designation of beneficiary was made on June 13, 1963; (2) this was an effective designation of plaintiff as beneficiary; (3) decedent never altered his designation of beneficiary; (4) the designation was still binding; (5) decedent knew about the increase in benefits and was put on notice of the possibility of changing beneficiaries and the need to keep his designation current. Plaintiff relied heavily on the deposition of Houghton. Houghton was responsible for the group insurance program. His testimony included conversations with decedent.

Defendant-executor filed a resistance to plaintiff's motion for summary judgment. It denied generally the allegations of the motion and maintained Houghton was incompetent under Code section 622.4, commonly known as the 'dead man statute'.

Plaintiff's motion for summary judgment was sustained. Judgment for plaintiff against Travelers Insurance Company for $27,000 together with 5 percent interest thereon from September 13, 1969 was entered with a declaratory judgment that the estate of Donald Allen Davis had no interest in the insurance proceeds. Executor's second assigned error is that the trial court erred in sustaining the motion for summary judgment.

I. Executor-appellant contends the question as to whether decedent made an effective designation of beneficiary on the life insurance policy is a matter solely within the jurisdiction of the probate court. She argues her special appearance therefore should have been sustained. We do not agree. Executor's claim that Code sections 633.10 to 633.14 confer exclusive jurisdiction to Polk County of this matter is erroneous. Said statutes do confer jurisdiction on the Polk County District Court as to the administration of decedent's estate and for claims in the estate but here the involved claim is not in the estate, but rather a claim of the estate.

The jurisdiction of the probate court is separate and distinct from the ordinary law and equity jurisdiction of the district court. Coulter v. Petersen, 218 Iowa 512, 255 N.W. 684; In re Estate of Watters, 201 Iowa 884, 885, 208 N.W. 281, and citations. The probate court has jurisdiction to determine the claim of property as between those interested in the estate but this authority goes only to determination of their relative interests as derived from the estate, and not to an interest claiming adversely thereto. In re Estate of Anders, 238 Iowa 344, 349--353, 26 N.W.2d 67, 70--72, and citations.

Plaintiff here asserts a claim as beneficiary of a life insurance policy. She is no more than a stranger to the estate. She claims no interest derived from the estate. Her claim is adverse to the estate. Cass County District Court had jurisdiction of the subject matter. Code section 604.1.

II. Rule 237, Rules of Civil Procedure, as pertinent, here provides:

'Summary judgment may be had under the following conditions and circumstances:

'(a) For Claimant. A party seeking to recover upon a claim, counterclaim, or cross-claim or to obtain a declaratory judgment may, at any time after the appearance day or after the filing of a motion for summary judgment by the adverse party, move with or without supporting affidavits for a summary judgment in his favor upon all or any part thereof. * * *

'(c) Motion and proceedings thereon. The motion shall be filed at least ten days before the time fixed for the hearing. The adverse party prior to the day of hearing may file opposing affidavits. The judgment sought shall be rendered forthwith if the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file, together with the affidavits, if any, show that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to a judgment as a matter of law. * * *

'(e) * * * The court may permit affidavits to be supplemented or opposed by depositions, answers to interrogatories, further affidavits, or oral testimony. When a motion for summary judgment is made and supported as provided in this rule, an adverse party may not rest upon the mere allegations or denials of his pleading, but his response, by affidavits or as otherwise provided in this rule, must set forth specific facts showing that there is a genuine issue for trial. If he does not so respond, summary judgment, if appropriate, shall be entered against him. * * *.'

The purpose of summary judgment is to enable a party with a just cause of action to obtain judgment without unnecessary delay and expense of trial where there is no genuine issue of material fact. Northwestern Nat. Bank of Sioux City v. Steinbeck, (Iowa) 179 N.W.2d 471, 475; Bauer v. Stern Finance Company, (Iowa) 169 N.W.2d 850, 853, cert. den. 396 U.S. 1008, 90 S.Ct. 565, 24 L.Ed.2d 500. The burden is upon the movant to show the absence of any genuine issue of material fact. And when any court is confronted with a summary judgment motion it must examine the entire record before it, including the pleadings, admissions, depositions, answers to interrogations, and affidavits, if any, to determine whether evidentiary facts are presented which, if decided in favor of defendant, would amount to a good defense of the action. Continental Ill. Nat. B. & T. Co. v. Security State Bank, (Iowa) 182 N.W.2d 116, 118; Northwestern Nat. Bank of Sioux City v. Steinbeck, supra; Sherwood v. Nissen, (Iowa) 179 N.W.2d...