Life Insurance Company of North America v. Capps

660 F.2d 392 LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY OF NORTH AMERICA, a corporation, Plaintiff-Counterdefendant-Appellee, v. William F. CAPPS and Renee Blutman, Defendants-Counterclaimants, Appellants. No. 80-5086. United States Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit. Argued and Submitted Sept. 9, 1981. Decided Oct. 26, 1981. Perry L. Hirsch, Hirsch & Ostrow, Los Angeles, Cal., for defendants-counterclaimants-appellants. Irwin Waldman, Hagenbaugh & Murphy, Los Angeles, Cal., for plaintiff-counterdefendant-appellee. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Central District of California. Before WRIGHT and FLETCHER, Circuit Judges, and EAST, * Senior District Judge. EUGENE A. WRIGHT, Circuit Judge: 1 Life Insurance Company of North America (LICNA) issued a life insurance policy in February 1976 to Marilyn Capps who died the following August of a preexisting heart condition. 2 Appellants, beneficiaries under the policy, submitted a claim for insurance benefits. LICNA responded by rescinding the policy and refunding the premiums paid, asserting that Mrs. Capps had misrepresented and concealed material facts in her application. 3 LICNA brought a diversity action seeking a declaratory…