Wells & McComas Council No. 14 v. Littleton

Pearce, J., delivered the opinion of the Court. This suit was instituted by Elizabeth J. Littleton for the recovery of the sum of five hundred dollars which she claimed as the beneficiary of John M. Littleton, a deceased member of the fraternal and beneficial association known as the “Wells, •and McComas Council No. 14, Junior Order United American Mechanics,” and the judgment in that case was reversed,, upon the plaintiff’s appeal, and a new trial was awarded.. After the first trial, and before a new trial was had, Elizabeth J. Littleton died, and her administrator was made the party plaintiff in her place. The’ second trial resulted in a verdict ⁴¹⁸ and judgment for the plaintiff for the full amount claimed, and from that judgment this appeal was taken.

Upon the first appeal, 98 Md. 453 , it was determined: 1st, that the beneficiary can sue an unincorporated association, such as this appellant is, in the name by which it is commonly known, without suing its individual members; and, 2nd, that by accepting the $500 paid to it by the two funeral benefit associations connected with the appellant, for the use of the beneficiary of the deceased member, John M. Littleton, the appellant admitted him to be in good standing at the time of his death, and therefore there was evidence sufficient to send the case to the jury upon the right to recover the amount so paid to the appellant. The appellant is a subordinate Council of the Junior Order United American Mechanics, a very large beneficial organization, and John M. Littleton had been a member of this council for several years before his death, which occurred December 15th, 1900. His annual dues were $8.60 payable quarterly at the end of each thirteen weeks in the year. These were all duly paid up to the quarter ending June, 1900, and the next quarter’s dues were payable September 26th, 1900.

These were not actually paid until October 10th, 1 goo, and the next dues were not payable till December 26th, 1900. Section 2 of Art. 4 of the by-laws of the appellant provided that “no brother owing thirteen weeks or more dues, shall be entitled to receive weekly, or death benefits, until thirteen weeks after paying all arrears.” This period had not elapsed between October 10th, 1900, the date of last payment of dues, then two weeks in arrears, and December 15th, 1900, the date of his death, and upon this ground, the appellant refused to recognize the beneficiary’s claim to death benefits. Sec. 1 of Art. 13, of the Laws of the Junior American Mechanic Funeral Benefit Association, requires that upon the death of any member of a council holding membership in that association, the secretary of the council shall forward application for death benefits to the Secretary of the Funeral Benefit Association, and also requires the latter to certify to the com ⁴¹⁹ mittee on benefits that the council is in good standing, and that the member's name is upon the roll; and Art. io provides that upon the death of a member of a council in good standing in the Funeral Benefit Association, the council shall receive funeral benefits, as specified therein, in accordance with the time of enrollment of said member upon the books of said association, and the amount of such funeral benefits in this case was $250. Like provisions are found, in even stronger terms in the laws of the other allied association (the “Junior Order United American Mechanics Death and Sick Benefit Association, Maryland and District of Columbia)and the amount of funeral benefits due therefrom in this case is the same, $25o.

Upon the death of John M. Littleton, the appellant made demand upon these two Funeral Benefit Associations for the funeral benefits above stated, and those sums were accordingly paid over to it, as such funeral benefits, but the appellant refused to pay them over to the beneficiary, and tendered instead, $30, as the full amount due under sec. 3 of Art. 5 of. the by-laws of appellant, to a non-beneficial member. This defense was fully considered by Judge Boyd on the former appeal from whose opinion we may reproduce brief extracts fully disclosing the ground upon which the defense was denied. The Court said, “It may, and sometimes does occur, that they (these benevolent societies) are excused from paying death benefits out of their treasury, on account of some default of the members, which seems to work a hardship in individual cases, but it is- necessary and proper that they be sustained for the general good of the members, and to avoid fraud .or imposition upon the orders. But when an order takes the position that a deceased member held such a rela.tion to it, as to entitle it to demand payment of death benefits from a Funeral Benefit Association, by reason of his death, and at the same time says that such relation of the member to it, was such as to deprive his beneficiaries of those death benefits, it behooves a Court of justice to give very close scrutiny to by-laws, or other rules that might work such results before ⁴²⁰ giving its sanction to them. * * * It would be contrary to the policy of the laws of this State in dealing with beneficial societies, to permit one of them to thus profit by the application of technical rules, and thus prevent the outgoing of money that came into its treasury through a liberal construction of the very terms now relied on. * * * As we think the council was only entitled to collect from the Funeral Bénefit Association the money paid it by reason of the death of Littleton, on the theory and assumption that he was in good standing when he died; and as we are satisfied that under a proper interpretation of the rules, the money was intended to be paid to the Council for the use of Littleton’s beneficiary, and was actually so paid, we are of the opinion that the Council, by thus accepting the money, has admitted, and therefore, there was evidence, that Littleton was in good standing and that the beneficiary could recover, the amount paid to the Council by the two associations, after deducting all costs and expenses if any, connected therewith, and all charges legally due the Council by Littleton at his death.” Littleton having left no widow or child, his mother became his beneficiary under the laws of the Council, and there can be no question she was the proper person to sue for the death benefits.

So far, therefore, as the standing of John M. Littleton as a beneficial member of the Council is concerned, and as the standing of his beneficiary, to recover in this suit is concerned, unless disentitled upon other grounds than that mentioned, or •unless precluded upon this trial, by other errors in the rulings, the judgment and opinion in the former appeal may be re.garded as conclusive, and the contention, repeated in this appeal, that the money.paid to the Council by the Funeral Benefit Associations, was paid, not because of the standing of the member, but because of the standing of the Council of which the deceased was a member, having been already decided upon full consideration, has no proper place in the consideration of this appeal. But it is contended by the appellant that notwithstanding the former decision, the beneficiary is not entitled ⁴²¹ to recover more than the $30 tendered her, because it is alleged that the Council decided she was only entitled to that sum, and that as she has not appealed from that decision to the State Council of the defendant organization as provided in its laws, that decision became final and conclusive upon her. This question was raised by the appellant’s fifth exception to the rejection of its prayer offered at the conclusion of the plaintiff’s case, but this prayer having been again offered at the conclusion of the whole case, any error in the ruling thereon at the earlier stage of the cause is waived. Barabasz v. Kabat, 91 Md. 53 .

The same objection however is raised by the ninth exception to the ruling upon all the' prayers offered at the close of the whole case, and as the ruling upon this prayer as re-offered goes to the root of the whole case we will consider that first. Art. 28, secs. 1 to 9 of the General Laws of the Council deals with the subject of appeals. Sec. 1, gives to any member, an appeal from any action of his State or Subordinate Council, within three months from the date of such action, by presenting his appeal to the secretary of the Council whose action is to be appealed from. Sec. 2 requires the secretary of such Council to attest such appeal to the Council at its next meeting, and to forward the same with a transcript of the minutes, to the next highest body, within ten days after reporting the appeal to the Council.

Secs. 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 relate to appellate procedure, and are immaterial here. Sec. 9 is as follows: “In all cases of appeal, whether relating to questions of disability, or death benefits, or grievance, the appellant, or his beneficiaries, shall be required to exhaust all regular methods of appeal to the Subordinate, State and National Council of the Order, and that the action of the several bodies passing thereon, shall be binding upon all parties, until reversed by the higher body to which the last appeal shall be taken.” The appellant’s authorities in support of this prayer are: Anacostia Tribe v. Murbach, 13 Md. 94; Osceola Tribe v. Schmidt, 57 Md. 98 ; Triesler v. Wilson, 89 Md. 177 , and Weigand v. Fraternities Order, 97 Md. 443 . ⁴²² The two cases first above mentioned were both suits by a member to recover sick benefits, in which it was -held that the member was concluded by the decision of the Tribe and Grand Council, and that there was no jurisdiction in the Court to render judgment contrary to their finding, upon the application of a member for the benefits of the association. The case in 89 Md. was a petition for a mandamus alleging fraud in the elections of defendants as directors of a life insurance company, and praying that they be commanded to vacate the