Curnow v. Phœnix Insurance
Curnow v. Phœnix Insurance
Opinion of the Court
The opinion of the court was delivered by
The defendant company, by its agents duly qualified and authorized thereto, executed its policy of insurance in writing, and thereby insured Mrs. A. J. Levy against loss or damage by fire, to the amount of $2,500, on a stock of merchandise, consisting principally of dry goods, groceries, notions, &c., contained in the one-story building situate on south side of Railroad Avenue street, in the town of Blackville, South Carolina. On October 18,1889, said stock of merchandise was totally destroyed by fire, of which loss notice and proofs were given, and payment demanded within the time prescribed. But the defendant corporation refused payment, and denied liability. Afterwards, on April 22,1890,
The cause came on for a hearing before Judge "Wallace, who, on motion of the counsel for the defendant, dismissed the complaint, “because it appears that the plaintiff is a non-resident of this State, the defendant is a foreign corporation, and the cause of action did not arise in this State, and the subject of the action is not situated in this State,” &c. Then the plaintiff moved to be allowed to amend her complaint, by adding thereto a copy of the assignment referred to in the complaint, claiming that the same would show that Mrs. A. J. Levy, a citizen of this State, and the original holder of the policy, still has a substantial interest therein. This motion was refused, on the ground that the court, having no jurisdiction of the action, can make no order in the cause. At the suggestion of counsel, the judge stated, “that the word 'record’ is used to embrace only such part of the record as was submitted to him at the argument of the motion, which was the complaint and the papers to which it referred.” The plaintiff appeals to this court from the order dismissing the complaint herein, and from the judgment entered up thereon, and from the order refusing the motion of the plaintiff to amend the complaint herein, upon the following grounds:
1. Because the policy sued on was issued by the defendant through its agent in this State on property in this State, where the loss occurred, and the policy and the loss thereunder was the cause of action, and his honor, therefore, erred in dismissing the complaint for want of jurisdiction.
2. That it appears from the complaint and the policy attached thereto, that the assured, A. J. Levy, was a resident of
3. That, under and by virtue of chapter 37, sections 1353—4, of the General Statutes of South Carolina, the courts of this State have jurisdiction of all actions against foreign insurance companies doing business in this State, for liabilities incurred in this State, and the action herein was a liability incurred in this State, and the Circuit Judge erred in holding, that he did not have jurisdiction.
4. That the defendant was a foreign insurance company doing business iu this State with a duly authorized agent, upon whom service could be made, as required by chapter 37, General Statutes, and upon whom service was made in this case; and the liability upon which the action herein was brought, having arisen upon a policy issued in this State,- upon property situate within this State, both at the time of issuing the policy and of the loss, the Circuit Judge erred in holding, that the court was without jurisdiction.
5. That the Circuit Judge erred in holding, that he did not have power to grant the amendment asked for.
6. That the amendment asked for by the plaintiff was in the interest of right and justice, and his honor, the Circuit Judge, erred in not allowing the same.
Section 423 of the Code provides, that “an action against a corporation by or under the laws of any other State, government, or country, may be brought in the Circuit Court: (1) by any resident of this State, for any cause of action; (2) by a plaintiff not a resident of this State, when the cause of action shall have arisen, or the subject of the action shall be situated, within this State.”
But where did the cause of action arise? “When a contract
In the case of Central R. R., &c., Co. v. Georgia, &c., Co., lately decided by this court (32 S. C., 319), both the plaintiff and defendant were foreign corporations or companies, but it appeared that there was a contract to do work on a railroad, part of which was in South Carolina and part not; and it was held that as to work done in South Carolina, the cause of action arose in this State. In that case, the Chief Justice, in delivering the judgment of the court, said: “Under this state of facts, we can not say that the Circuit Court erred in holding, that the cause of action in this case, to large extent, arose in this State (as to the work done in this State), and hence this action, as well as the attachments issued in aid thereof, may be sustained, to the extent, at least, which these plaintiffs may be able to show at the trial, that they have a cause of action which arose in this State,” &c. We think the cause of action in this case arose within this State, and that it was error to dismiss the complaint for the want of jurisdiction.
The judgment of this court is, that the judgment of the Circuit Court be reversed, and the case remanded for such proceedings as may be necessary to carry .out the conclusions herein announced.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- CURNOW v. PHŒNIX INSURANCE COMPANY
- Cited By
- 2 cases
- Status
- Published
- Syllabus
- 1. Actions Against Foreign Corporations.—The question whether chap. XXXVII. of General Statutes does not, by implication, authorize actions in the courts of this State against foreign insurance companies doing business in this State, raised but not considered. 2. Ibid.—Policy op Insurance—Subject op Action.—In an action to recover for a loss by fire under the covenants of a policy of fire insurance, what is the “subject of the action?” 3. Ibid.—Ibid.—Place op Contract—Cause op Action.—Where a policy of fire insurance, covering a stock of goods in this State, was issued from the home office of the insurer corporation in Connecticut, but declared not to be valid until countersigned by their agent in this State, where it was so countersigned and delivered, and where the breach afterwards occurred, the cause of action arose in this State, and, therefore, the assured, and the plaintiff to whom the assured had assigned the policy after proof of loss and demand and refusal of payment, could maintain action against the foreign insurance corporation in the courts of this State. Code, \\ 4-23. 4. Policy—Place op Payment.—The stipulation in this policy, that the loss should “be paid to the assured, or to the assured’s legal representatives, sixty days after due notice and satisfactory proof of the same have been received at their office, in accordance with the terms of this policy hereinafter mentioned,” did not provide for payment at the home office, but only postponed payment until sixty days after notice and proof of loss received, at such office. 5. Cases Criticised.—This case distinguished from Rodgers v. Mutual Endonmuent Association, l! S. 0., 410, and Central R. R., ere., Company v. Georgia, &c., Company, 32 Id., 319.