On the death of an insured, any life insurance acquired by the insured or the insured's spouse and payable to the intestate insured's estate benefits the surviving spouse and children and the proceeds shall be divided between them according to the statutes of distribution without being in any manner subject to the debts of the decedent. If the proceeds of the insurance are payable to the estate of a testate decedent or the trustee of a revocable trust of which the decedent was a settlor, the proceeds shall pass as part of the estate or trust and under the dispositive provisions of the will or trust agreement, as ordinary cash, whether or not the will or trust agreement uses any apt or express words referring to the insurance proceeds, but the proceeds shall not be subject to the debts of the decedent unless specifically charged with the debts in the will or trust agreement.
Code 1858, § 2478 (deriv. Acts 1845-1846, ch. 216, § 3); Shan., § 4231; Code 1932, § 8456; Acts 1969, ch. 233, § 1; 1972, ch. 845, § 1; 1976, ch. 668, § 1; T.C.A. (orig. ed.), § 56-1108; Acts 2007, ch. 8, § 13.
Notes of Decisions
Cited in
12
cases, 1983–2013 · leading case:
Phipps v. Watts, 781 S.W.2d 863 (Tenn. Ct. App. 1989).
Phipps v. Watts, 781 S.W.2d 863 (Tenn. Ct. App. 1989).
· cites it 10× “Tenn.Code Ann. § 56-7-201 (1980) provides in part: Any life insurance effected by a husband or wife on their own life, shall, in case of their death, inure to the benefit of the surviving spouse and children and the money thence arising shall be divided between them according to…”
McLemore v. Huffines (In Re Huffines), 57 B.R. 740 (M.D. Tenn. 1985).
· cites it 8× “The Debtor has claimed that these life insurance proceeds in her hands are exempt either pursuant to Tenn.Code Ann. § 56-7-201 to § 56-7-203; 26-2-111(3); or 26-2-111(1)(C).”
Newport v. Thurman (In Re Thurman), 127 B.R. 401 (M.D. Tenn. 1991).
· cites it 6× “Thurman sought to exempt the cash surrender value of a life insurance policy from the claims of his creditors pursuant to T.C.A. § 56-7-201. The bankruptcy court held that Thurman could not exempt the life insurance policy in question.”
Bell v. Bell, 896 S.W.2d 559 (Tenn. Ct. App. 1994).
· cites it 2× “It has been consistently held in Tennessee that Tennessee Code Annotated section 56-7-201 does not vest any interest in the widow or children as to the proceeds of life insurance on the husband.”
Marler v. Scoggins, 105 S.W.3d 596 (Tenn. Ct. App. 2002).
· cites it 2× “an any evidence provided by occupants in the insured vehicle; (2) The insured or someone in the insured’s behalf shall have reported the accident to the appropriate law enforcement agency within a reasonable time after its occurrence; and (3) the insured was not negligent in…”
In Re Crowell, 53 B.R. 555 (Bankr. M.D. Tenn. 1985).
“§ 56-7-201 (1980), et seq. Since the Tennessee Code deals with exemptions of life insurance in these specific situations, the court is convinced that the legislature did not intend TENN.”
In Re Smith, 242 B.R. 427 (Bankr. E.D. Tenn. 1999).
· cites it 2× “1985), which involved the Tennessee insurance exemptions provided in Tenn.Code Ann. § 56-7-201 to 203, and § 26-2-lll(l)(C) and (3).”
In re Thurman, 120 B.R. 99 (Bankr. M.D. Tenn. 1990).
· cites it 7× “§ 56-7-201 is controlling. TENN. CODE ANN.”
Gary Buck v. John Scalf (Tenn. Ct. App. 2003).
· cites it 2× “At the time of the accident, the defendants were uninsured motorists within the meaning of Tenn. Code Ann. § 56-7-201 , et seq. Hartford Underwriter’s Insurance Company (Hartford) was the uninsured motorist carrier on Taylor’s automobile and plaintiff was an insured under the…”
Reed v. Reed (Tenn. Ct. App. 1997).
· cites it 2× “T.C.A. §56-7-201. The plaintiffs are not judgment creditors, within the meaning of the above statute, they are vested beneficiaries of the policy.”
In Re: Est. of Clendenon (Tenn. Ct. App. 2013).
“(b) In the event of the death of any such person so insured as set out in subsection (a), any sum or sums of money so due and payable at the time of the death of the insured shall likewise be exempt from the claims of all creditors and from execution, attachment or garnishment,…”
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