Searle v. Allstate Life Ins. Co.

• Decision Date: 04 April 1985
• Citation: 212 Cal.Rptr. 466,38 Cal.3d 425,696 P.2d 1308
• Court: California Supreme Court
• Parties: , 696 P.2d 1308, 53 USLW 2525 Alice M. SEARLE, Plaintiff and Appellant, v. ALLSTATE LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY, Defendant and Respondent. L.A. 31703.

Page 466

212 Cal.Rptr. 466

38 Cal.3d 425, 696 P.2d 1308, 53 USLW 2525

Alice M. SEARLE, Plaintiff and Appellant, v. ALLSTATE LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY, Defendant and Respondent.

L.A. 31703.

Supreme Court of California.

April 4, 1985.

Norvin L. Grauf, San Diego, for plaintiff and appellant.

Adams, Duque & Hazeltine, James L. Nolan and Ronni B. MacLaren, Los Angeles, for defendant and respondent.

Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, John L. Endicott, Daniel M. Kolkey and Pamela J. Thomason, Los Angeles, as amici curiae on behalf of defendant and respondent.

REYNOSO, Justice.

Martin Searle died as a result of a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head. Under the terms of his life insurance policy his beneficiary, Alice M. Searle, was precluded from recovering the full value of the policy if death resulted from "suicide, whether sane or insane." We address five questions: (1) Should we reconsider the conclusions reached on a prior appeal in this action concerning the meaning and validity of that clause of the policy notwithstanding the rule of law of the case? (2) Is the policy clause valid and unambiguous? (3) Must the insurance carrier, in order to avoid liability on the policy, carry the burden of proving that the insured's act of self-destruction was intentional and not accidental? (4) If suicidal intent is proven, can the beneficiary nevertheless recover by demonstrating that the deceased was unable to understand the physical nature and consequences of his act? (5) Can the beneficiary recover by demonstrating that the deceased was unable to control his conduct and that the act therefore was the result of an irresistible impulse? As will appear below, we answer the first four questions in the affirmative and the fifth question in the negative.

I

In May 1975 Martin Searle was issued a life insurance policy in the face amount of $50,000 by defendant Allstate Life Insurance Company (Allstate). Plaintiff Alice Searle, Martin's second wife, was the named beneficiary. In accordance with the terms of the contract, Martin paid his monthly premiums. He had fully performed his monetary obligations to Allstate at the time of his death on March 13, 1976. He was then 37 years old.

Following Martin's death, Alice Searle (Searle) filed a claim with Allstate for payment on the policy. In reliance on the clause that excluded coverage for "suicide, whether sane or insane," within two years of the issuance of the policy, Allstate denied liability and refunded the premiums. Searle accepted the offer, though she later retendered the premiums. Allstate, however, refused the retender.

Searle sued Allstate for the full face value of the policy on the life of her husband. The parties agreed that death resulted from an act of self-destruction. Allstate moved for summary judgment citing the suicide exclusion clause. Its motion was granted on the basis of the undisputed testimony that Martin's death occurred 10 months after the issuance of the policy and resulted from an act of self-destruction. Searle appealed.

The Court of Appeal, in Searle v. Allstate Life Ins. Co. (1979) 96 Cal.App.3d 614, 158 Cal.Rptr. 5 (hereinafter Searle I ), reversed the summary judgment, finding a triable issue of fact as to whether the insured possessed the requisite intent to commit suicide. The court held that suicide definitionally required the taking of one's life both intentionally and voluntarily or deliberately. (96 Cal.App.3d at p. 616, 158 Cal.Rptr. 5.) The court concluded that if Martin was so insane as to be unable to form the requisite intent, his act was not suicide. The court held, therefore, that the phrase "suicide, whether sane or insane" was ambiguous and illogical and construed the ambiguity against Allstate as drafter of the policy. In conclusion, the appellate court stated, "If Martin was sane and intended to take his own life, then he committed suicide, and Allstate is liable for repayment of the premiums only. If, however, Martin was insane when he took his own life, then he did not commit suicide and Allstate is liable for the full value of the policy." (Ibid.) ¹

On remand the parties stipulated that "the remaining issue to be resolved concerns the mental capacity of MARTIN SEARLE at the time of his death in accordance with the decision of Searle v. Allstate Life Ins. Co., 96 Cal.App.3d 614 ." The parties also stipulated that the matter would be submitted to the jury on special verdict forms, that Allstate had issued a policy to Martin Searle, that Martin died within two years of the issuance, that his death was caused by a self-inflicted gunshot wound, that Allstate had tendered and refused retender of the premiums paid by Martin, and that the stipulation would not impair the right of any party to object to the contents of any instruction or verdict form.

At the jury trial before the San Diego County Superior Court, plaintiff presented the following facts. In March 1975, Martin retired from the Navy after completing 20 years of service as a radioman and communications instructor. In July 1975, Martin began to experience physical problems. The condition worsened gradually and he began to have problems climbing stairs and grasping and holding onto objects. Concerned about his condition, Martin decided to consult a physician at Balboa Hospital, a naval hospital in San Diego. In November 1975, Dr. Joseph Izzo, a neurosurgeon, performed surgery to stablize Martin's condition.

After the operation, Martin's physical condition improved, although his left arm was so weakened that he was eventually unable to lift it over his head. In January 1976, and increasingly through February, Martin became depressed about his condition. Around January 1, 1976, Martin became sexually impotent. Martin made no express threats of suicide to his wife, his employer or his friends at this time, although he discussed his concern about his impotence with his wife, telling her that "if I lose that, you can forget me."

On February 13, 1976, Martin saw Dr. Izzo for the last time. In addition to his impotence, Martin complained about sleeplessness, restlessness and weight gain in the face of a poor appetite. Dr. Izzo noted Martin's depression and suggested he see a psychiatrist. Martin was adamantly opposed to this suggestion, but he agreed to take antidepressant drugs and stay in touch with Dr. Izzo.

The final contact between Dr. Izzo and Martin was a telephone conversation on March 12, 1976, the evening before Martin's death. At trial, Dr. Izzo testified that Martin sounded happy and jovial and wanted to go off the medication.

Following the telephone call, Martin went to bed and had a very restless night. The next morning, Martin hugged and kissed his wife affectionately and said "Honey, you better hang in there, things might get a little worse."

That day, Martin and Searle discussed the insomnia problem and Martin said he thought he should get more medication from Dr. Izzo and that he was going to see a psychiatrist Monday morning. Martin said he had had a nightmare about being in jail for manslaughter. They discussed their vacation plans and Searle testified that Martin was looking forward to that vacation.

After breakfast, Martin and Searle went shopping and purchased approximately one month's supply of food. Martin also bought some trees and other items for the garden. He spent the afternoon gardening and doing other household chores. Later in the afternoon, the couple discussed going out, but decided it was too expensive and planned to stay at home and go out the following weekend instead. Before dinner, Searle got Martin to dance, which she had not been able to do for some time, but Martin stumbled and became bitter. Following dinner, they sent the children--two daughters from Martin's first marriage and a neighbor's child who was staying overnight--upstairs for bed.

Searle went upstairs to settle a dispute between the children. Martin then came upstairs and said, in reference to the children, "You're not going to have to get on them anymore."

Searle testified that she went into the master bedroom and Martin followed shortly thereafter. He appeared agitated and reached under the mattress, pulled out a gun, pointed it towards the children's bedroom and ordered Searle to get the neighbor's child and get out of the house. He repeated his order and threatened to "take them to hell with me." When Searle asked, "Honey, what's wrong?" Martin said, "I can't take it anymore." ² He then pointed the gun at his wife; she asked him not to hurt the children. Without responding, Martin raised the gun to his head and pulled the trigger. Searle testified that at the time the gun went off, Martin's eyes widened and his face registered a surprised look.

Plaintiff also presented the opinion testimony of two expert witnesses. Dr. Izzo testified that Martin was in a state of rage, in a psychotic state, at the time he killed himself. He testified that Martin did not intend to kill himself and that Martin did not understand the nature and consequences of his act. He stated that "in our society, and in the context of our society and how we think" suicide is not the act of a sane person. Dr. Alan Davidson, a psychologist, testified that in his opinion, Martin had lost contact with reality and was psychotic. Dr. Davidson added that Martin did not intend to kill himself, because intention is a rationally motivated type of behavior. He further testified that Martin did not understand the nature and consequences of his act.

Dr. Robert Litman, a psychiatrist and leading expert in the field of suicide and suicide prevention, was called to testify by the insurance company. Dr. Litman testified that he saw Martin as a proud, dominant man to whom it was very important to be in control. Dr. Litman believed that suicide presented an option to Martin, because his physical injuries and threatened sense of masculinity were very real problems which he could not control. Dr....