Evans v Coventry
| Jurisdiction | England & Wales |
| Judgment Date | 27 March 1857 |
| Date | 27 March 1857 |
| Court | High Court of Chancery |
English Reports Citation: 44 E.R. 612
BEFORE THE LORDS JUSTICES.
S. C. 26 L. J. Ch. 400; 5 W. R. 436. See Stringer's Case, 1869, L. R. 4 Ch. 480, n.; In re National Funds Assurance Company, 1878, 10 Ch. D. 127; In re Oxford Benefit, &c., Society, 1886, 35 Ch. D. 509; Cullerne v. London and Suburban Building Society, 1890, 25 Q. B. D. 489.
[835] evans v. coventry. Before the Lords Justices. March 19, 20, 24, 27, 1857. [S. C. 26 L. J. Ch. 400; 5 W. R. 436. See Stringer's case, 1869, L. R. 4 Ch. 480, n. ; In re National Funds Assurance Company, 1878, 10 Ch. D. 127; In re Oxford Benefit, &c., Society, 1886, 35 Ch. D. 509 ; Oullerne v. London and Suburban Building Society, 1890, 25 Q. B. D. 489.] In a suit for winding up the affairs of a mutual company, which was formed for the purposes, among others, of insuring the payment of sums of money during the sickness and on the death of its members, and of receiving deposits at interest, and the rules of which as well as the terms of its policies provided that the funds of the society should alone be answerable for the claims of insurers, a decree was made which, among other things, declared that the insurers had a charge on so much of the capital and funds as was attributable to the insurance branch ; and the decree contained directions for the valuation of immature assurances. On appeal the decree was varied, and, as varied, declared that the capital and funds ought to be applied to answer the claims of the insurers and depositors. But it was not disturbed as to the direction for valuation. Form of decree in such a case. This was an appeal by the Plaintiffs seeking to have certain variations made in a decree of Vice-Chancellor Kindersley. The bill was filed by eleven persons " on behalf of themselves and all other the persons insured in the capital or joint stock and property of the company or society called The General Benefit Life Assurance and Loan Society," against the directors, and the secretary who was out of the jurisdiction, and it prayed for an account of the property of the company, for a declaration that the Plaintiffs and all others insured had a charge on the capital of the company, and that it might be applied to answer their claims; that the Defendants might be declared personally liable for losses alleged to have occurred through their default, especially by reason of improper payments of dividends and defalcations of the secretary, and that the Defendants might be declared liable to pay what remained unpaid in respect of their shares. The company was formed in the year 1820, for the purpose of granting insurances of two descriptions, viz., insurances of sums payable on death, and insurances to secure weekly or monthly sums of money during sickness, and also for the purpose of granting deferred annuities. It appeared also that a loan society and deposit [836] bank was established, as to which there was much conflict of evidence whether it was a distinct society or not, but it was ultimately established that it was only a branch of the above company. Some of the depositors were made Defendants. 8DEQ. M. SO. 837. EVANS V. COVENTRY 613 The company was constituted by a deed of settlement in July 1820, with a capital of 50,000, divided into 1000 shares of 50 each; 2, 10s. was to be paid on each share within a short limited time, and the rest was to be paid by calls to be made as mentioned in the deed. The management of the concern was vested in the directors, subject to the directions of general meetings of the body of shareholders. The following clauses of the deed were principally referred to in argument. " 34. That the court of directors shall require from the secretary, inferior clerks and servants such security for their good conduct while in the service of the company, and allow them out of the funds or property of the company such salaries or wages, as they shall think proper. " 108. That the funds or property of the company for the time being remaining unapplied and undisposed of and inapplicable to prior claims and demands in pursuance of the trusts, powers and authorities contained in these presents shall alone be answerable for the claims and demands of persons insuring with the company and the annuity creditors ; and the directors signing the policies and the instruments securing the annuities shall be personally liable to the persons to whom the policies shall be given or annuities granted for the application of the said funds or property in discharge of the money secured by the said policies and of the said annuities, but not further or otherwise, and that neither in respect [837] to the persons claiming under the said policies nor the persons entitled to the said annuities, nor in respect to the directors who may have signed policies or instruments securing annuities, or any of their heirs, executors or administrators, shall the proprietors of the company be answerable indirectly or directly further or otherwise than as their respective shares not subject to prior claims or demands in the company's said capital stock of 50,000, it being the true intent and meaning of these presents that no claim upon any policy or upon any instrument securing any annuity shall be enforced against any of the directors, their heirs, executors or administrators, to a greater extent than the funds or properties of the company at the time of recovering upon such policy or instrument securing such annuity shall be competent to reimburse them, and that the person or...
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