Last Class Review

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Last Class Review

• Waiver, estoppel, and reformation
• Doctrine of Reasonable Expectations
• Taylor v. State Farm
• Parole Evidence (Corbin/ Williston)
• Corbins proposed rule
• Pacific
• An insurance contract is like any other
• To determine intent, we construe the instrument
  as a whole.
• Use everyday language
• Ambiguous if suggests two meanings to layperson.
• If ambiguous, extrinsic evidence for intent and
  trade usage.

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First Party Coverage Issues

• Uniform Determination of Death
• Determination of Death. An individual who has
  sustained either (1) irreversible cessation of
  circulatory and respiratory functions, or (2)
  irreversible cessation of all functions of the
  entire brain, including the brain stem, is dead.
  A determination of death must be made in
  accordance with accepted medical standards.

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Crobons

• Marvin Wyatt good guy or bad guy?
• Bad guy. Why?
• Pulls the old switcheroo
• What do we get out of the case?
• Rebuttable presumption is death certificate
• Can be rebutted with evidence of loss of brain
  function or other evidence that demonstrates
  death was at a different time (note 2)
• Note 4 death and taxes are certain. Fortuity?
• How is this battle fought practically?

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Nielsen

• Suicide
• Facts
• Sane or insane?
• Question does the REAL cause matter?
• Most states have statute support Nielsen (note 1)
• Foolish but risky (note 4)

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Maryland Law

• Maryland defines suicide Md. Code Ann.,
  Insurance Section 16-215
• Facts of Fister v. Allstate Life Ins. Co., 366
  Md. 201 (2001)
• Looking for someone to kill her
• Hires friend who testified this is how it went
  down 'Let's do it! Let's do it! Let's do it!'
  She said, 'Larry, for the first time in your
  life, do something right, help me! Help me!' And
  before I knew it, I had pulled the trigger." 
• Larry gets five years
• Does Larry get anything? He was a beneficiary.
• No. Contingent beneficiary is estate
• Maryland definition of suicide Does not include
  hiring someone to kill you heirs recovery over
  1.6 million

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Incontestability

• Maryland law "There shall be a provision that
  the policy (exclusive of provisions relating to
  disability benefits or to additional benefits in
  the event of death by accident or accidental
  means) shall be incontestable, except for
  nonpayment of premiums, after it has been in
  force during the lifetime of the insured for a
  period of two (2) years from its date of issue."
• Most states have similar law

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Crawford

• Facts
• More than two years later, Ms. Crawford dies
• Plaintiff and decedent makes misrepresentations
• 32 hours a week
• Earned a salary
• Worked for business
• Is eligibility a threshold issue?
• How about termination of employment?

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Lemke

• Key question what is required to evidence intent
  to change beneficary
• Facts
• Writes to cut his wife out as his beneficiary
• What is compelling about the language?
• What is the test? Either strict compliance or
• Intent
• Affirmative action

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Problem with Oral Statements

• People change their minds. Often.

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Murdering the Insured

• Facts
• Wife murders husband
• Wifes sister is secondary beneficiary after wife
  
• Sister is raising stepchild
• Sister and murderer are not close
• Does this matter?

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Possible Rules to Deal with Indirect Hookup

• What is an indirect hookup?
• Killer gets a benefit from the killing
• Possible rules to deal with
• Georgia bright line rule
• Factual determination is the killer getting an
  indirect benefit.
• Faulknerian opacity
• Theme of the day human relationships are
  complicated

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Definition of Accidental Death

• Facts man dies during an operation unexpectedly
• Cause of death cardiac arrest
• 58 years old 75 pounds overweight high blood
  pressure possible diabetic several martinis
  pack and a half

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Definition of Accidental Death

• Facts man dies during an operation unexpectedly
• Cause of death cardiac arrest
• 58 years old 75 pounds overweight high blood
  pressure possible diabetic several martinis
  pack and a half
• Accidental results v. accidental means
• Serbonian Bog
• Difference in this case and how Maryland looks at
  insurance contracts
• What was the parol evidence?