IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF OHIO
EASTERN DIVISION
HELEN SULLIVAN,
Plaintiff,
v.
ROYAL LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY,
Defendant.
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
Case No._________________
Judge:_________________
TRIAL BRIEF
Counsel for defendant Royal Life Insurance Company submits the following Trial Brief:
I. Jurisdiction
Jurisdiction is based on diversity jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1332(a)(2) because the
Plaintiff, a citizen of Canada, is an Ohio resident alien, while the Defendant is a Delaware
corporation with its principal place of business (headquarters) in Indiana, and the amount in
controversy exceeds $75,000.
II. Uncontested Facts
James Sullivan (hereinafter Mr. Sullivan), deceased, and Helen Sullivan (hereinafter Mrs.
Sullivan), Plaintiff, moved to the Cleveland, Ohio, on Janurary 1, 2022, when Mr. Sullivan
accepted a position as Head of the Canadian Sales division of Sunburst Computers.
On May 15, 2022,, Mr. Sullivan purchased a life insurance policy from Defendant Royal
Life Insurance Company (hereinafter Royal) through their Customer Service Representative,
Roger Watson. The policy amount Mr. Sullivan purchased was $200,000 and Mr. Sullivan named
Mrs. Sullivan as his beneficiary.
On September 2, 2022, James Sullivan was discovered in his vehicle by Officer Thomas
Strong at the lookout point on Ridge Road after Officer Strong noticed Mr. Sullivan’s vehicle
earlier in the night while on patrol. When Officer Strong went to Mr. Sullivan’s vehicle to
investigate, Mr. Sullivan was found unresponsive. As a result of this, Officer Strong broke Mr.
Sullivan’s car window and checked Mr. Sullivan’s pulse. When Officer Strong could not find a
pulse on Mr. Sullivan, he immediately called an ambulance. Mr. Sullivan was pronounced dead
by a physician after he arrived to the hospital. Mrs. Sullivan identified his body shortly after.
Subsequently, an autopsy was performed by a medical examiner who identified an alcohol and
Oxycodone overdose as Mr. Sullivan’s cause of death. Outside of alcohol and Oxycodone, Mr.
Sullivan’s toxicology report also showed Ativan in Mr. Sullivan’s system; however, Mr.
Sullivan’s type of death was stated as unknown.
On October 1, 2022, after Mr. Sullivan’s passing, Mrs. Sullivan emailed Watson to make
a claim on Mr. Sullivan's life insurance policy. Mrs. Sullivan attached Mr. Sullivans death
certificate to the email she sent and requested payment of $400,000 due to claiming that her
husbands death was accidental and, therefore, the accidential death clause of Mr. Sullivan's
policy entitled her to this amount. On October 4, 2022, Roger Watson forwarded Mrs. Sullivan’s
claim along with a personal memorandum to John West (hereinafter West), a Claims Manager
with Royal. In Watson’s memorandum to West, Watson suggested that West investigate the
sudden death of Mr. Sullivan as a suicide mainly because Mr. Sullivan’s policy was only four
months old and a cause of death was not identified by the medical examiner who performed Mr.
Sullivan’s autopsy. On November 1, 2022, after performing an extensive investigation, West
denied Mrs. Sullivan’s claim for three reasons including the fact that Mr. Sullivan’s second
quarterly premium payment was due on or before August 15, 2022; however, payment was made
by check that wasn’t received until after August 20, 2022. Under the plain language meaning of
the policy Mr. Sullivan signed, late payment is a basis for terminating the policy.
Next, West denied Mrs. Sullivan’s claim because West’s investigation led Royal to
believe that statements Mr. Sullivan made regarding his health on his application for life
insurance were inaccurate or incomplete. West was informed by Mrs. Sullivan that Mr. Sullivan
was seeing, family practitioner, Dr. Henderson. However, Dr. Henderson refused to turn over Mr.
Sullivan’s medical records and Mrs. Sullivan subsequently refused to turn over the record as a
result of Dr. Henderson’s refusal. This led West to conclude that there was likely something in
Mr. Sullivan’s medical records that would prevent Mrs. Sullivan from collecting on Mr.
Sullivan’s policy. Under the plain language of the policy, all representations in the application are
deemed material representations. As a result, West concluded that Royal would not have issued a
policy to Mr. Sullivan if he had accurately described his current physical condition as requested
in the application.
Lastly, West denied Mr. Sullivan’s claim because West’s investigation into Mr. Sullivan’s
death led Royal to conclude that Mr. Sullivan’s death was suicidal. During his investigation,
West interviewed James Carson, Mr. Sullivan’s former employer and President of Sunburst
Computers. During his interview with West, Mr. Carson disclosed that Mr. Sullivan accepted his
position in the company on January 1, 2022. However, over the months, the Canadian sales
division did not do as well as he had expected. As a result, Mr. Carson stated that Mr. Sullivan’s
pay was effected since part of his salary was contingent on his divisions sales. Moreover, Mr.
Carson stated that he informed Mr. Sullivan in July and August of 2022 that if the Canadian sales
division did not improve their division sales soon then Mr. Carson would close the division
down, causing Mr. Sullivan to lose his job.
Considering the information given to West by Mr. Carson, the inability to obtain Mr.
Sullivan’s medical records, along with Mrs. Sullivan stating to West that Mr. Sullivan was
stressed because of work and likely sought Dr. Henderson’s services as a result of this stress,
West concluded that Mr. Sullivan’s death was likely suicidal. As a result of this conclusion, the
policy signed by Mr. Sullivan states that if, within two years of the effective date of this contract,
the deceased, while sane or insane, commits suicide, the liability of Royal shall be limited to the
amount of premiums paid before the date of death. As a result of Royal denying Mrs Sullivan’s
claim to Mr. Sullivan’s policy due to suicide, West enclosed a check in the amount of $1,000,
representing the two quarterly premiums paid by Mr. Sullivan prior to his death.
III. Contested Facts
1. Was Mr. Sullivan’s death a suicide?
2. Were the statements made by Mr. Sullivan on his application for insurance regarding his
health made inaccurate or incomplete?
3. Does Mr. Sullivan submitting his quarterly premium payment late give Royal a legitimate
basis to terminate Mr. Sullivan’s policy?
IV. Contested Issues of Law
1. Does Mr. Sullivan committing suicide prevent Mrs. Sullivan, the policy beneficiary, from
collecting on the policy?
2. Does the statements made by Mr. Sullivan on his application for insurance regarding his
health being inaccurate or incomplete void his policy ab initio?
3. Whether Royal Life Insurance Company has reasonable justification and a lawful claim
for denying Mrs. Sullivan’s claim to collect on the decedent’s policy because (1) the
decedent’s death was caused by suicide or (2) the decedent’s death was caused by a
pre-existing health issue that was not disclosed during decedent’s application process?
4. Under Ohio law, did Royal Life Insurance Company act with bad faith in denying Mrs.
Sullivan’s claim?
V. Exhibits
A. Defendant Royal Life Insurance’s Exhibits:
1. Plaintiff’s Letter to Roger Watson RE: James Sullivan, Insured dated October 1, 2022.
2. Defendant’s Letter to Plaintiff RE: Claim on Policy No. 43557 (James Sullivan) dated
November 1, 2022.
3. Decedent's Life Insurance Policy with Royal Life Insurance Company dated May 15,
2022.
4. Decedent’s Certificate of Death dated September 5, 2022.
5. Decedent’s Bank Records; Page Numbers: 512 - 514
6. Decedent’s Final Autopsy Report dated September 2, 2022.
7. Decedent’s Application for Life Insurance with Royal Life Insurance Company dated
May 1, 2022.
8. Roger Watson, Customer Service Manager Memorandum dated October 4, 2022.
9. Officer Thomas Strong’s General Incident Report RE: James Sullivan dated September
2, 2022.
10. Royal Life Insurance Company’s Check totaling $1,000 to Helen Sullivan dated
November 1, 2022.
11. James Sullivan’s Royal Life Insurance Company’s Policy History Record
12. John West letter to Dr. Robert Henderson RE: James Sullivan, deceased dated October
8, 2022.
13. John West letter to Sandy Smith RE: James Sullivan, deceased dated October 8, 2022.
14. John West letter to James Carson RE: James Sullivan, deceased dated October 8, 2022.
15. All Memorandums RE: James Sullivan, Policy No. 43557 created by John West.
VI. Witnesses
A. Defendant Royal Life Insurance’s Witnesses:
1. Helen Sullivan, Plaintiff
2. John West, Defendant’s Claims Manager
3. Roger Watson, Defendant’s Customer Service Manager
4. Sandy Smith, Decedent’s Banker
5.
6.
7.
8.
Officer Thomas Strong
Dr. Robert Henderson, Decedent’s Physician
James Carson, Decedent’s Employer
Kelly O’Brien, Decedent’s Neighbor
_____________________
Alaina Collins
Attorney for Defendant
`