Mutual Life Ins. Co. of New York v. Patterson, 2075.
| Decision Date | 30 July 1936 |
| Docket Number | No. 2075.,2075. |
| Citation | 15 F. Supp. 759 |
| Parties | MUTUAL LIFE INS. CO. OF NEW YORK v. PATTERSON et al. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Western District of New York |
Dwyer, Reilly, Roberts, McLouth & Dicker, of Rochester, N. Y. (David H. Shearer, of Rochester, N. Y.), for plaintiff.
Vedo M. Candiello, of Hornell, N. Y., for defendant Grace H. Patterson.
James W. Cullen, of Sayre, Pa., for defendants Donald and Ethel Holcomb.
On May 22, 1928, plaintiff issued its policy of insurance on the life of Sydney J. Patterson payable, upon his death, to his children, Ethel Holcomb and Gertrude Patterson, in equal shares. The policy contained a clause which authorized the insured from time to time to change the beneficiary by filing written notice in the home office of the company accompanied by the policy for endorsement, provided there was no existing assignment of the policy other than to the company then outstanding, and further provided that "such change shall take effect upon endorsement of the Policy by the Company."
Accordingly the insured duly changed the beneficiary on October 2, 1929, to Grace Patterson, his wife, one of the defendants herein, and the change was indorsed upon the policy. On April 11, 1936, plaintiff received a request from the insured to again change the beneficiary so that the policy would be payable, upon his death, to the defendants Ethel Holcomb and Donald Holcomb. The policy of insurance did not accompany the request for change of beneficiary, it has never been delivered to the plaintiff, and no indorsement of any change has been made thereon.
The insured died on April 13, 1936. On April 29, 1936, Grace Patterson filed and plaintiff received due proofs of the insured's death, and she claimed the proceeds of the policy. On May 20, 1936, the defendants Donald Holcomb and Ethel Holcomb filed claim under the policy. Thereupon the plaintiff filed this bill of interpleader against the several claimants, paid the amount due according to the terms of the policy into court, and has asked to be relieved from any further participation in litigation between claimants to the fund and for other relief. Coincident with the motion of plaintiff, the defendant Patterson moved to dismiss the bill as insufficient upon its face on the ground, substantially, that the bill does not show that there is a substantial controversy between the defendants in which the plaintiff is not interested.
Inasmuch as the policy, by its terms, gave to the insured the right to change the beneficiary, Grace Patterson acquired only an expectancy to the proceeds of the policy during the lifetime of the insured (Mutual Benefit Life Ins. Co. v. Swett C.C.A. 222 F. 200, 204, Ann.Cas.1917B, 298), but her right became vested absolutely upon the death of the insured without previous change of beneficiary (Schoenholz v. New York Life Ins. Co., 234 N.Y. 24, 29, 136 N. E. 227, 228). Undoubtedly the company could insist that there should be a strict...
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