Urback v. Metro. Life Ins. Co., No. 17.
| Court | United States State Supreme Court (New Jersey) |
| Writing for the Court | PARKER, Justice |
| Citation | 127 N.J.L. 585,23 A.2d 568 |
| Docket Number | No. 17. |
| Decision Date | 09 January 1942 |
| Parties | URBACK v. METROPOLITAN LIFE INS. CO. |
127 N.J.L. 585
URBACK
v.
METROPOLITAN LIFE INS. CO.
No. 17.
Court of Errors and Appeals of New Jersey.
Jan. 9, 1942.
When a life insurance company is asked to underwrite a death risk, and the usual preliminary questionnaire is to be answered by the applicant, the prior medical history of such applicant and true statement thereof are matters essentially material to the risk involved, and the materiality of such matters is not the subject of a finding by the jury.
PERSKIE, Justice, and RAFFERTY, Judge, dissenting.
Appeal from Circuit Court, Essex County.
Action on a life insurance policy by Sadie Urback against the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company. From an adverse judgment, defendant appeals.
Judgment reversed, and venire de novo awarded.
See, also, 127 N.J.Eq. 253, 12 A.2d 677.
George W. C. McCarter, of Newark, for appellant.
Klein & Klein, of Newark (Edward Gaulkin, of Newark, of counsel), for respondent.
PARKER, Justice.
This is an action by the beneficiary of a life insurance policy. The plaintiff is the widow of the insured. There were six separate defenses set up in the answer, each of which is based on some allegedly "false and fraudulent" answer to a question propounded by the insurer on the usual application form, and in view of which answers the policy was issued. Certain of the answers appear plainly to have been false, particularly as to "illnesses and ailments" not mentioned in them. The trial court left it to the jury to find whether or not these answers were fraudulent, and no special complaint is now made on that score. But the court went farther, and instructed the jury that it was for them to find whether the answers were material to the risk. The language of the charge on this point was as follows: "So, you must find that the misrepresentation, if fraudulent, was material, that is, material to the risk, material for the defendant insurance company to know in passing on and determining if it will accept the risk." A little later in the charge the court went on to discuss the answer to the fifth question, which read as follows: "Have you ever been an inmate of, or have you ever received treatment in any asylum, hospital, sanitarium, or cure? If yes, give date, duration, name of ailment, and name of institution." The answer given to this stated that in 1909 (the policy was issued May 1, 1936) the deceased had been in Beth Israel Hospital for appendectomy, and did not state what...
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Fidelity & Deposit Co. of Md. v. Hudson United Bank, Civ. A. No. 78-357.
...194, 198, 183 A. 154 (E. & A.1936), Gallagher v. New England Mutual Life Ins. Co., supra. See, Urback v. Metropolitan Life Ins. Co., 127 N.J.L. 585, 23 A.2d 568 (E. & A.1942). The failure to provide information where there is a duty to disclose is equivalent to an affirmative misrepresentat......
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Massachusetts Mut. Life Ins. Co. v. Manzo
...at 20-21, 114 A.2d 857; DeVinney v. Prudential Ins. Co., 128 N.J.L. 270, 274, 25 A.2d 254 (1942); Urback v. Metropolitan Life Ins. Co., 127 N.J.L. 585, 586, 23 A.2d 568 (1941); Locker v. Metropolitan Life Ins. Co., 107 N.J.L. 257, 260-61, 151 A. 627 (E. & A.1930); Prudential Ins. Co. v. Hol......
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Formosa v. Equitable Life Assur. Soc. of U.S.
...also, Gallagher v. New England Mut. Life Ins. Co. of Boston, supra, 19 N.J. at 20-21, 114 A.2d 857; Urback v. Metropolitan Life Ins. Co., 127 N.J.L. 585, 586, 23 A.2d 568 (E. & A. 1942); Parker Precision Products Co. v. Metropolitan Life Ins. Co., supra ; 7 Couch on Insurance 2d, § 37:252 (......
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Ettelson v. Metropolitan Life Ins. Co., No. 9273.
...a correct instruction since materiality is a question of law to be determined by the court (Urback v. Metropolitan Life Ins. Co., 1942, 127 N.J.L. 585, 23 A.2d 568), and these answers were plainly material to the 10 Henn v. Metropolitan Life Ins. Co., 1902, 67 N.J.L. 310, 51 A. 689; Urback ......
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Fidelity & Deposit Co. of Md. v. Hudson United Bank, Civ. A. No. 78-357.
...194, 198, 183 A. 154 (E. & A.1936), Gallagher v. New England Mutual Life Ins. Co., supra. See, Urback v. Metropolitan Life Ins. Co., 127 N.J.L. 585, 23 A.2d 568 (E. & A.1942). The failure to provide information where there is a duty to disclose is equivalent to an affirmative misrepresentat......
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Massachusetts Mut. Life Ins. Co. v. Manzo
...at 20-21, 114 A.2d 857; DeVinney v. Prudential Ins. Co., 128 N.J.L. 270, 274, 25 A.2d 254 (1942); Urback v. Metropolitan Life Ins. Co., 127 N.J.L. 585, 586, 23 A.2d 568 (1941); Locker v. Metropolitan Life Ins. Co., 107 N.J.L. 257, 260-61, 151 A. 627 (E. & A.1930); Prudential Ins. Co. v. Hol......
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Formosa v. Equitable Life Assur. Soc. of U.S.
...also, Gallagher v. New England Mut. Life Ins. Co. of Boston, supra, 19 N.J. at 20-21, 114 A.2d 857; Urback v. Metropolitan Life Ins. Co., 127 N.J.L. 585, 586, 23 A.2d 568 (E. & A. 1942); Parker Precision Products Co. v. Metropolitan Life Ins. Co., supra ; 7 Couch on Insurance 2d, § 37:252 (......
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Ettelson v. Metropolitan Life Ins. Co., No. 9273.
...a correct instruction since materiality is a question of law to be determined by the court (Urback v. Metropolitan Life Ins. Co., 1942, 127 N.J.L. 585, 23 A.2d 568), and these answers were plainly material to the 10 Henn v. Metropolitan Life Ins. Co., 1902, 67 N.J.L. 310, 51 A. 689; Urback ......