De Gogorza v. . Knickerbocker Life Ins. Co.
New York Court of Appeals
Appeal from judgment of the General Term of the Supreme Court in the second judicial department, affirming a judgment in favor of plaintiff entered upon a verdict of a j™-7- This action was brought upon a policy of insurance issued by defendant upon the life of plaintiff’s husband. The policy contained a provision that it should be void and of no effect if the insured should “ die by his own hand, sane or insane.”
Read the full summary
Appeal from judgment of the General Term of the Supreme Court in the second judicial department, affirming a judgment in favor of plaintiff entered upon a verdict of a j™-7- This action was brought upon a policy of insurance issued by defendant upon the life of plaintiff’s husband. The policy contained a provision that it should be void and of no effect if the insured should “ die by his own hand, sane or insane.” For some considerable time prior to October 24, 1870, Mr. Gogorza had some disease of his brain which seriously affected his mind, and on that day he was found in his room, in his…
1Opinion of the Court
Reynolds, C.
The learned judge at the Circuit, among other things, instructed the jury, in substance, that if the act which caused the death of the assured was not a voluntary act, not the 'act of his own will, but an involuntary act when he was in a mental condition which rendered him incapable of exercising his will, then the defendant was liable. A verdict for the plaintiff having been rendered under this direction, I shall assume that the jury found that when the hand of the assured delivered the fatal shot he was wholly bereft of reason. This view of the result of the verdict is the most…
2Cases cited2 opinions
- Life Insurance v. TerrySupreme Court of the United States · 1873
- Van Zandt v. . Mutual Benefit Life Ins. Co.New York Court of Appeals · 1873
3Cited by48 opinions
- Supreme Commandery of the Knights of the Golden Rule v. AinsworthSupreme Court of Alabama · 1882
- Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance v. HazelettIndiana Supreme Court · 1886
- Barnes v. County of OnondagaAppellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York · 1984
- Eisenbach v. Metropolitan Transportation AuthorityNew York Court of Appeals · 1984
- Wellisch v. John Hancock Mutual Life InsuranceNew York Court of Appeals · 1944
43 more not listed; retrieve them via the Exa API.