Honetsky v. Ussian Consol. Mut. Aid Soc. of Am.

• Citation: 176 A. 670
• Decision Date: 21 January 1935
• Docket Number: No. 12.,12.
• Parties: HONETSKY v. USSIAN CONSOL. MUT. AID SOC. OF AMERICA.
• Court: New Jersey Supreme Court

176 A. 670

HONETSKY

v. USSIAN CONSOL. MUT. AID SOC. OF AMERICA.

No. 12.

Supreme Court of New Jersey.

Jan. 21, 1935.

Suit for declaratory relief by Paul Honetsky against the Russian Consolidated Mutual Aid Society of America. From a judgment for plaintiff, defendant appeals.

Affirmed.

Argued October term, 1934, before the CHIEF JUSTICE, and PARKER and BODINE, JJ.

John D. Craven, of Jersey City, for appellant.

Abraham J. Isserman, of Newark, for respondent.

BODINE, Justice.

Paul Honetsky had been, for a number of years, a policyholder in and member of the Russian Consolidated Mutual Aid Society of America. His membership was through the Tenth Branch situate in Newark, N. J. His dues and payments were regularly made through April, 1930. In that month, trouble arose in the Tenth Branch and most of the officers and members joined another organization. Honetsky, in order to comply with the provisions of his contract of insurance, made many efforts to pay his dues to the local as well as the parent organization. The moneys which he sent by postal order were returned, the reason alleged being that he was not in good standing.

The plaintiff brought this suit under the Declaratory Judgment Act, Pamph. L. 1924, p. 312 (Comp. St. Supp. 1924, § 163—351 et seq.), to have established what his rights were in the defendant organization. The case was tried before a jury, and the judgment of the court was that he was still a member of the defendant organization, and that his contract of insurance was still valid and subsisting.

"The Declaratory Judgment Act, by its first and second sections [Comp. St Supp. 1924, §§ 163—351, 163—352], confers upon our courts of record, within their respective jurisdictions, power to declare rights, status, or other legal relations, although no further relief is or could be claimed, and empowers those courts, among other things, to determine any question of construction or validity arising under a deed, will, or written contract, and declare the rights, status, or other legal relations thereunder of the parties thereto. Such declarations, by the express language of the statute, are given the force and effect of final judgments or decrees. It is true that they are not enforceable by execution or other final process, but relief, based thereon, may be granted, whenever necessary or proper, on application to a court having jurisdiction to grant such relief. Section 8 [Comp. St. Supp. 1924, § 163—358]." McCrory Stores Corp. v. S. M. Braunstein, Inc., 102 N. J. Law, 592, 134 A. 752, 753.

Plaintiff's rights as member and...