Excelsior Fire Insurance v. Royal Insurance
New York Supreme Court
In August, 1865, James Connolly was owner of a grist-mill in the city of Rochester, which was subject to two mortgages of $10,000 each, held by one Dows. In July, 1870, Mrs. Connolly, the wife of the mortgagor, entered into a contract with Dows for the purchase of said mortgages for $15,000, to be paid as follows: $2,500 to be paid down, $5,000 on the 1st of August following, and the balanee in installments, which Mrs. C. covenanted to pay.
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In August, 1865, James Connolly was owner of a grist-mill in the city of Rochester, which was subject to two mortgages of $10,000 each, held by one Dows. In July, 1870, Mrs. Connolly, the wife of the mortgagor, entered into a contract with Dows for the purchase of said mortgages for $15,000, to be paid as follows: $2,500 to be paid down, $5,000 on the 1st of August following, and the balanee in installments, which Mrs. C. covenanted to pay. Mrs. C. made the first two payments, amounting to $7,500. In December, 1870, Mr. C., acting for his wife, but without any express authority from her,…
1Opinion of the CourtMullet, P. J.
The Commonwealth and Excelsior companies must be deemed to concede their liability upon the policies issued by them to Mrs. C. It cannot be claimed, therefore, that those policies have ever been canceled or surrendered.
If the defendant’s policy is an operative, valid contract in the hands of the plaintiffs as assignees of Mrs. C., she had insured her interest in .the mills to the extent of $15,000, although she had in fact paid towards the mortgage but $7,500 up to the time of the fire, and we are not informed that she has paid anything since.
The agreement between Mrs. C. and Dows is not…
2Cases cited1 opinion
- Thompson v. American Tontine Life & Savings InsuranceNew York Court of Appeals · 1871