Parvin v. Mut. Reserve Life Ins. Co.

• Citation: 125 Iowa 95,100 N.W. 39
• Parties: PARVIN v. MUTUAL RESERVE LIFE INS. CO.
• Decision Date: 11 June 1904
• Court: United States State Supreme Court of Iowa

125 Iowa 95

100 N.W. 39

PARVIN

v.MUTUAL RESERVE LIFE INS. CO.

Supreme Court of Iowa.

June 11, 1904.

Appeal from District Court, Linn County; W. N. Treichler, Judge.

Suit at law to recover on two certificates of membership issued by the Northwestern Masonic Aid Association on the life of the plaintiff's father, T. S. Parvin. The facts necessary to an understanding of the questions to be determined in this case are as follows: The Masonic Aid Association was a mutual benefit association incorporated under the laws of the state of Illinois. The certificates or policies sued on herein were issued to Mr. Parvin in April, 1889. By their terms, Mr. Parvin was to pay $1.70 upon the death of each member of the division to which he belonged; such payments to be made after due service upon him of notice of the death of such member, as provided in the by-laws of the association. Upon the death of Mr. Parvin there was to be paid to his beneficiary a certain sum of money for each member of the division to which he belonged, not exceeding the amount of the certificates. Both certificates provided that, upon a failure to pay the stipulated assessments as agreed, the contract should “close and be of no effect.” In June, 1896, the Northwestern Masonic Aid Association changed its corporate name, and was thereafter called the Northwestern Life Assurance Company. In August, 1900, a contract was entered into between the Northwestern Life Assurance Company and the appellant, then called the Mutual Reserve Life Association, whereby the company tendered to the association for membership “all of its living members who, by its books and records, are in good standing, except such as shall file a written notice of his or her preference to be transferred to some other corporation,” and whereby the association agreed to accept as its members all of the members of the company who were in good standing at the time the contract was ratified and approved by the company, “as shown by the books and records of said company.” Mr. Parvin died in June, 1901. The plaintiff contends that his father became a member of the appellant company by virtue of this contract with the Northwestern Company, while the appellant asserts that it never agreed to accept, and never did accept, Mr. Parvin as one of its members. There was a directed verdict for the plaintiff, and from a judgment thereon the defendant appeals. Reversed.C. E. Cleveland, Geo. Burnham, Jr., and Wright & Call, for appellant.

Clark Varnum, Voris & Haas, and W. A. Foster, for appellee.

SHERWIN, J.

The contract between the Mutual Reserve Fund Life Association and the Northwestern Life Assurance Company, so far as material to the inquiry before us, is in the following language:

“First. Said Company has and does hereby tender to said Association, as members of said Association, each and all of its living members who, by its books and records, are in good standing, except such as shall file a written notice of his or her preference to be transferred to some other corporation than to the said association, in accordance with the provisions of Section 16 of an act of the Legislature of the State of Illinois [Hurd's Rev. St. 1903, p. 1109, c. 73, § 245], entitled ‘an act to incorporate Companies to do the business of life or accident insurance on the assessment plan, and to control such companies of this state and of other states doing business in this state, and to repeal a certain Act therein named, and providing and fixing the punishment for the violation of the provisions thereof,’ approved by the Legislature of the said State of Illinois, June 22nd, 1893, and in force July 1st, 1893, and all who may keep and continue their respective insurance in force by paying the premium calls of said association, in...