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Commercial Union Insurance Co. v. Pelchat3/24/1999
This case requires us to determine who, if anyone, is entitled to recover benefits in a wrongful death action in which a husband was the proximate cause of his new wife's death. The wrongful death act provides that a decedent's next of kin become beneficiaries in the event there are no spouse and children. Guided by our canons of statutory construction and our prior case law, we hold that the wrongful death act permits recovery of benefits by a decedent's next of kin where, as here, the spouse is not legally entitled to recover.
Facts and Procedural History
Raymond Pelchat (Raymond) and Bonnie Lynn Dumas Pelchat (Bonnie Lynn) were married on May 13, 1989. Raymond drove the car in which they left their wedding reception in the early morning hours of May 14, 1989. Tragically, the car was involved in an accident in which Bonnie Lynn was killed. The car was owned by Bonnie Lynn and insured by Commercial Union Insurance Company (Commercial Union), plaintiff in this case. On January 3, 1991, Raymond pleaded nolo contendere to the charge of Driving Under the Influence -- Death Resulting.
On the basis of this plea, Philip M. Sloan, Jr., administrator of the estate of Bonnie Lynn Pelchat (estate), filed a wrongful death action in the Superior Court naming Raymond and others as defendants and seeking damages pursuant to G.L. 1956 § 10-7-1.1 of the wrongful death act. Under the terms of Bonnie Lynn's auto insurance policy, Commercial Union was required to -- and did --defend Raymond in the suit. In addressing the distribution of Bonnie Lynn's estate, the Probate Court of the Town of Richmond, in 1991, had entered a miscellaneous petition applying the slayer's act and thereby prohibited Raymond from inheriting from the estate.
In November of 1992, Commercial Union filed a declaratory judgment action seeking relief from any further obligation to defend or indemnify Raymond in the wrongful death suit. Both parties filed motions for summary judgment. After hearing arguments, a Justice of the Superior Court denied both motions without prejudice. With regard to plaintiff's motion, the trial Justice explained that O'Leary v. Bingham, 90 R.I. 441, 159 A.2d 619 (1960), mandated that a trial court could "not make a determination as to the identity of beneficiaries until a judgment has been entered awarding damages."
On July 7, 1997, following a hearing in the Superior Court on the wrongful death action, a settlement between Raymond and the estate was filed. As part of this settlement, Raymond admitted liability in Bonnie Lynn's death and submitted to judgment. A consent order was entered and sealed by the Superior Court. The judgment was stayed, however, pending a determination in a declaratory judgment action of the proper beneficiaries of the wrongful death proceeds.
Subsequent to the settlement in the wrongful death suit, Commercial Union renewed its motion for summary judgment in a declaratory judgment action before a different Justice. The trial Justice found that Raymond and Bonnie Lynn were legally married at the time of the accident, and he rejected Commercial Union's argument that Bonnie Lynn's parents "ceased being possible beneficiaries of any recovery of wrongful death damages" at the moment of Bonnie Lynn's marriage. In addition, the trial Justice denied Commercial Union's motion for summary judgment and ruled in favor of the administrator of the estate. The court explained, " ublic policy mandates that there should be recovery in cases of wrongful death. Section 10-7-2 merely establishes a priority ladder to whom such damages should go. Although Raymond Pelchat is `on the top rung,' he cannot recover based on the reasons discussed in
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