Estate of Althenn v. Althenn

• Decision Date: 02 June 1992
• Citation: 609 A.2d 711
• Parties: ESTATE OF Ronald C. ALTHENN v. Cynthia S. ALTHENN 1 .
• Court: Maine Supreme Court

Page 711

609 A.2d 711

ESTATE OF Ronald C. ALTHENN v. Cynthia S. ALTHENN ¹.

Supreme Judicial Court of Maine.

Argued Jan. 10, 1992.

Decided June 2, 1992.

Thomas B. Nicholson (orally) and Waldemar G. Buschman, Weeks & Hutchins, Waterville, for plaintiff.

Leonard I. Sharon and William B. Cote (orally), Lewiston, for defendant.

Before McKUSICK, C.J., ^* and ROBERTS, WATHEN, GLASSMAN, CLIFFORD and COLLINS, JJ.

CLIFFORD, Justice.

The plaintiff, the Estate of Ronald C. Althenn (Estate), appeals an order of the Superior Court (Kennebec County, Alexander, J.) granting summary judgment to the defendant Cynthia S. Althenn on the Estate's three-count complaint. The Estate argues that summary judgment was inappropriate because it had raised genuine issues of material fact as to whether Ronald Althenn successfully made the Estate the beneficiary of his life insurance policy or whether Cynthia breached her promise to convey the insurance proceeds to the Estate or, alternatively, to use them for the benefit of Ronald's minor son. Finding no error in the trial court's judgment, we affirm.

Ronald and Cynthia were married in 1987. Ronald had a son from a previous marriage. Shortly after the marriage, Ronald began work at the Augusta Mental Health Institute (AMHI) and took out the maximum allowable life insurance with double indemnity for accidental death under a group life insurance policy issued to the Maine State Retirement System (MSRS) by Union Mutual Life Insurance Company (UNUM). Ronald designated Cynthia as the beneficiary of the policy. After only a year and a half of marriage, the Althenns were divorced, and a year after that, Ronald died by accidental drowning.

Ronald's insurance policy was issued to MSRS in compliance with 5 M.R.S.A. §§ 18001--18061 (1989 & Supp.1991). Section 18057(1) (1989) requires that the proceeds of the policy be paid first to the designated beneficiary "whom the employee designated in writing, if the written designation was received in the employing office before the employee's death." The policy in turn requires that a change of beneficiary be filed with UNUM through MSRS on a form satisfactory to UNUM and provides that any change of beneficiary will take effect as of the date the completed form is received by MSRS. MSRS never received a form from Ronald changing the beneficiary, and UNUM was prepared to pay the proceeds of the policy to Cynthia.

Failing in its attempt to convince Cynthia to voluntarily turn the proceeds over to it, the Estate filed suit against Cynthia, MSRS, and UNUM in three counts, alleging that Ronald had taken sufficient steps during his lifetime to change the beneficiary of the policy from Cynthia to the Estate (Count I), and, in the alternative, that Cynthia had entered into an oral contract with Ronald to convey the proceeds of the policy to the Estate (Count II), or to use them solely for the benefit of Ronald's son (Count III). Cynthia filed a counterclaim against the Estate for abuse of process. UNUM interpleaded by counterclaim seeking to have the proceeds deposited with the court in an escrow fund. ² See M.R.Civ.P. 22.

Cynthia moved for summary judgment on all counts. She argued that (1) any attempt by Ronald to change the beneficiary of the policy during his lifetime was ineffective because he did not comply with the terms of either the policy or the statute, and (2) she was not aware of the existence of the policy or that she was the beneficiary, and therefore she could never have promised to use the proceeds in any particular manner. MSRS joined in Cynthia's motion and filed affidavits stating that Cynthia was the designated beneficiary of the policy and that neither MSRS nor AMHI had any record of a change in beneficiary executed by Ronald. ³

In opposition to the motion for summary judgment, the Estate filed an affidavit of Charlene French, a friend of Ronald's, and an attested, though unsworn, statement of Laurette V. McGuire, also a friend of Ronald's. The Estate also relied on Ronald's purported holographic will, which had been appended to the complaint. French's affidavit stated that she had accompanied Ronald to the AMHI administrative offices and that "[Ronald] told [French] that he was going up to the Personnel Office to change the beneficiary of his life insurance. When [Ronald] returned ... he told [French] that everything had been taken care of." McGuire's statement stated that Ronald told McGuire that he wanted Cynthia to have the proceeds of the policy and that "He and [Cynthia had] talked and he was sure that [Cynthia] was the only person that he could trust to do what he wanted with the money" and that "[Cynthia] would see to it that [Ronald's son] would have the things that he needed." Ronald's holographic will appears to leave the proceeds of the policy to Eric Plato, Ronald's cousin, in trust for his son.

This appeal by the Estate results from the court's grant of summary judgment to Cynthia on all counts of the Estate's complaint. ⁴

I.

In support of Cynthia's motion for summary judgment on Count I of the Estate's complaint, Cynthia and MSRS presented evidence that Cynthia is the named beneficiary of the life insurance policy and that the beneficiary was never changed pursuant to the terms of either the statute or the policy. ⁵ In response, the Estate submitted only the affidavit of Charlene French, that states French accompanied Ronald to the AMHI offices to change the beneficiary. The Estate also relies on the provisions of Ronald's holographic will attached to the complaint. The will purports to leave the proceeds of the policy in trust for his son. The Estate urges the court to apply the equitable doctrine that if an insured has expressed his intention to change the beneficiary of his policy, and has taken positive action to effectuate that intention, then the court "will decree that to be done which ought to have been done" and declare the new person to be the beneficiary of the policy. See Clark v. Metropolitan Life Ins. Co., 126 Me. 7, 10, 135 A. 357 (1926); see also Messier v. Metropolitan Life Ins. Co., 154 Vt. 406, 578 A.2d 98, 100 (Vt.1990).

When reviewing a grant of summary judgment, we view the evidence in the light most favorable to the party against whom the judgment has been granted, and review the trial court's decision for error of law. F.O. Bailey Co., Inc. v. Ledgewood, Inc., 603 A.2d 466 (Me.1992). The Estate, however, was required to respond to Cynthia's evidence submitted to support her motion for summary judgment with competent and admissible evidence, including affidavits based on personal knowledge containing admissible evidence. Sun Lumber v. Loiselle, 593 A.2d 213, 215 (Me.1991); M.R.Civ.P. 56(e). The Estate could not rely solely on its allegations or a general denial. Farrell v. Theriault, 464 A.2d 188, 193 (Me.1983); Depositors Trust Co. v. Herold, 458 A.2d 430, 431 (Me.1983); M.R.Civ.P. 56(e). Furthermore, because the Estate would have the burden of proof at trial, it was required to produce evidence sufficient to resist a motion for a directed verdict if it produced at trial nothing more than was before the court on the motion for summary judgment. H.E.P. Development Group, Inc. v. Nelson, 606 A.2d 774, 775 (Me.1992). When a jury verdict in a plaintiff's favor would be based on pure conjecture or speculation, it is proper for the court to grant a directed verdict. Pratt v. Freese's Inc., 438 A.2d 901, 904 (Me.1981).

Assuming the validity and applicability of the doctrine that equity will decree "that to be done which ought to be done," the evidence relied on by the Estate is insufficient to create an issue of material fact or to resist a motion for directed...