Goshen v MONY

  • 2000 - LC - Goshen v Mutual Life - Opinion - Judge Beatrice Shainswit - 600466/95-012 - 12p
  • 1997 1024 - WSJ - MONY Wins Dismissal of Suit Over 'Vanishing Premium' Policies, by Leslie Scism - [link]
    • The company, popularly known as MONY, won a dismissal this week of a national class-action lawsuit that is similar to more than 30 suits pending against major life insurers.
    • ... in the MONY case, New York state judge Beatrice Shainswit found that..
      • while thousands of consumers nationally "have been deeply aggrieved by what they perceive to be a grave injustice perpetrated upon them by the numerous insurance companies who contrived, and profited, from the "vanishing premium" concept," this "ill-conceived product" doesn't necessarily "equate to fraud, or any other actionable wrongdoing, which can be compensated for in a court of law."
      • Her 29-page decision debunks key arguments in almost all of the suits. - <WishList = "29-page decision">
        • She said insurance agents don't have a fiduciary relationship with their clients, as plaintiffs' lawyers contend.
        • She also maintained that sales documents stating that dividends aren't guaranteed at high levels were sufficient warning to consumers that they couldn't rely on other promotional literature showing rosy dividend scenarios.
    • [ACLI] - "This case, being typical of many other baseless class actions, will be cited as authority in other jurisdictions for dismissing those frivolous cases," predicted Phillip Stano, senior counsel for the American Council of Life Insurance, a trade group in Washington. "And we congratulate MONY for standing up to those who sought to intimidate them into a frivolous settlement."