Southern Farm Bureau Life Insurance Company v. John Fuller Burney, A/K/A John Bruce

In this diversity case, the plaintiff, Southern Farm Bureau Life Insurance Company, sued to recover from the defendant, John Fuller Burney, its insured, $470,-000 that the company had paid out to beneficiaries of policies on Burney’s life. The District Court 1 found that the payments had been induced by fraud on the part of Burney and entered judgment in favor of the company. We affirm.

On June 11, 1976, Burney, who was in financial difficulty, left his home in Helena, Arkansas, and traveled to other states, eventually ending up in Florida. He referred to himself as “John Bruce” and purported…