Old Southern Life Ins. Co., Inc. v. Spann

Patsy L. Spann brought suit against Old Southern Life Insurance Company to recover damages for breach of contract, fraud, and bad faith refusal to pay a claim.

The case was submitted to a jury, which returned a verdict in favor of Mrs. Spann and awarded her damages of $175,000, of which $156,743.80 were punitive and $18,256.20 were for doctor and hospital bills. The trial court denied Old Southern's motions for directed verdict, new trial, and judgment notwithstanding the verdict.

In February of 1982 two agents of Old Southern contacted Mrs. Spann. After some discussion, Mrs. Spann decided to…