80 A. 157 | Conn. | 1911
The appeal in this case contains several assignments of error and numerous claims for the correction of the finding.
It is said in the brief of the appellant that the two questions raised are: first, was the law adopted by the Grand Lodge of Connecticut in 1901, suspending any member of the Order who engaged in the retail business of selling intoxicating liquors as a beverage, and rendering his benefit certificate void, "a reasonable law or regulation, and therefore binding upon John W. Burns"; and second, "did the plaintiff waive said law, so far as it related to said Burns, by its conduct" after Burns engaged in said business?
It was an irregular proceeding to bring an action in the nature of a bill of interpleader in order to obtain a decision of these questions, which really resolve themselves into this inquiry: Is the present plaintiff liable to pay to Mrs. Burns the $2,000 benefit insurance named in the certificate? The real dispute was between Mrs. Burns and this plaintiff, and that should have been settled by an action at law by her against the Grand Lodge of Connecticut, which it could and should have defended in behalf of the members of the Order. An action in the nature of a bill of interpleader lies when one person has money or property in his hands or possession which is claimed by two or more other persons. Public Acts of 1893, p. 222, Chap. 42 (General Statutes, § 1019). Clearly no one but Mrs. Burns is entitled to be paid the $2,000 in the hands of this plaintiff. The members of the Grand Lodge, who are made parties, are not in any event entitled to have this fund paid *364 to them. If the certificate is valid, it should be paid to Mrs. Burns; if it is not, it should be retained by the plaintiff for the payment of other death claims. The administrator of Burns does not claim that the certificate is void. No one questions but that the $122, paid by Burns after he engaged in the liquor business, should be paid to Burns' administrator, if the certificate is void. Upon a decision in favor of Mrs. Burns of the real question in dispute between her and this plaintiff, she would have been entitled to receive the entire $2,000, without any deduction by way of allowance to the Grand Lodge for its expenses and counsel fees; and upon a decision that the certificate was invalid, no allowance should have been made to Mrs. Burns for counsel fees. The position of the Grand Lodge was not such as to require it to commence this action, and the trial court should have refused to order the parties to interplead. But as no question has been raised regarding the form of the action, or of the judgment, and as the proper parties were before the Superior Court, and the real question between them was there decided, we have concluded to consider the questions presented by the appeal, but with the suggestion that our action is not to be regarded as a precedent for permitting such proceedings in the future.
First: Burns was none the less bound by the law in question because it was adopted by the Grand Lodge of Connecticut, while his application and certificates, in which he agreed to comply with the present and future laws, regulations and requirements of the Order, were made to and issued by the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts. Burns consented to the law which provided for a division of the territory over which the Massachusetts Grand Lodge had jurisdiction, and the conferring upon the Grand Lodge of Connecticut jurisdiction over members residing in Connecticut. It is *365 conceded that he was properly transferred to the jurisdiction of the Connecticut grand lodge. The claim made by Mrs. Burns is against the Grand Lodge of Connecticut. The agreements of his application and certificate to abide by the laws, etc., apply, therefore, to the laws of the Connecticut grand lodge.
The fact that the law in question was adopted after Burns' certificate was issued does not render it unreasonable or inapplicable to him and his certificate. He expressly agreed to become bound, not only by the laws in force at the time he became a member of the Order, but also by those which might thereafter be enacted by the Order. Gilmore v. Knights of Columbus,
The law is not unreasonable in its character. It may rightly be said to be one tending to enhance the dignity and influence of the Order, as well as to diminish the risk of mortality. State ex rel. Strang v. Camden LodgeA. O. U. W.,
If Burns' ignorance of the law forbidding members of the Order from engaging in the liquor business was material, the burden was upon this appellant to prove her allegation of such ignorance. The trial court has found as a fact that Burns knew of the law. Even if it can be said that the direct evidence presented was insufficient to support that finding, the conclusion manifestly *366
reached by the trial court, that there was a failure of proof of Burns' alleged ignorance of the law, was justified. But as the members of such Orders are ordinarily supposed to be reasonably cognizant of the provisions of their constitutions and laws, by which they have expressly agreed to become bound, and under which they know their benefit certificates have been issued and continued in force (Coughlin v. Knights ofColumbus,
Did the act of receiving assessments from Burns after he had engaged in the liquor business constitute a waiver of his forfeiture of membership, or estop the plaintiff from claiming such forfeiture?
Burns himself presumably understood that he was not a member when he paid these assessments.
No member of either the Grand Lodge, or of America Lodge, No. 44, who received the assessments, had actual knowledge, until after Burns' death, that he was engaged in the liquor business.
By the constitution and laws of the Grand Lodge, Reynolds, the recorder of America Lodge, No. 44, was required to keep accurate minutes of the proceedings of the America Lodge, and to record the same in a book provided for that purpose. He was to mail monthly to *367 the grand recorder the report of the subordinate lodge, and also to notify him monthly of certain events. Among the events he was required to record upon the beneficiary certificate register of the subordinate lodge, were all suspensions and expulsions of members, and among the facts of which he was to notify the grand recorder were the rejection of applicants, expulsion of members, and of the suspending, annulling, or canceling of certificates which the recorder was to enter upon the records and of which he was to notify the grand recorder were evidently those which were the result of some action of the subordinate lodge, of the doings of which the recorder would be supposed to know. It was no part of his duty to decide when an insurance certificate was annulled, nor to ascertain from sources or inquiries outside of the lodge, when not engaged in the discharge of official duty, in what business the certificate holders were engaged; nor is there any provision expressly requiring him to record the fact, or notify the grand recorder of the fact, that a certificate holder was engaged in the retail liquor business, however he might learn that fact.
But the general law, by which an officer of a corporation in the transaction of official business may be treated as the principal, does not apply with the same force to the officers of the defendant corporation under its constitution and laws as it does to officers of ordinary corporations. In Coughlin v. Knights of Columbus,
This language of Coughlin v. Knights of Columbus,
The facts found are sufficient to enable the appellant to fairly present the questions raised by the appeal, and the application for a correction of the finding is denied.
There is no error.
In this opinion the other judges concurred.