Lincoln Life Assurance Company of Boston v. Sampson

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE MIDDLE DISTRICT OF PENNSYLVANIA LINCOLN LIFE ASSUR. CO., : Civil No. 3:19-CV-1769 : Plaintiff : : v. : (Magistrate Judge Carlson) : GARY SAMPSON, et al., : : Defendants : MEMORANDUM OPINION I. Introduction “All happy families are alike; each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.”1 Tolstoy’s observations about the nature of familial strife are a fitting metaphor for this case, an insurance policy interpleader action set against the backdrop of a decidedly unhappy family. The patriarch of this particular unhappy family was Wheeler Sampson. Mr.…