Sec. 23. Any domestic stock life insurance company may become a mutual life insurance company and to that end may carry out a plan for the acquisition of shares of its capital stock by amending its articles of incorporation and complying with the following requirements:

     (a) Such plan shall be approved by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the policyholders, present and voting at a meeting called for that purpose. For the purpose of this section a quorum shall consist of at least ten per cent (10%) of the policyholders of such company. Each policyholder whose insurance shall have been in force for at least one (1) year prior to such meeting shall have one (1) vote, regardless of the number of policies or amount of insurance he may have with such company. Notice of such meeting shall be given by mailing from the principal office of such company at least thirty (30) days prior to the date set for such meeting in a sealed envelope, postage prepaid, addressed to such policyholders at their last known post-office addresses. Voting shall be by ballot, in person or by proxy, or by mail under the direction of inspectors appointed by the commissioner and in accordance with such other regulations as he may prescribe. Such inspectors shall have the power to determine all questions concerning the verification of the ballots, the ascertainment of the validity thereof, the qualifications of the voters, and to canvass the vote. They shall certify to the commissioner and to the company the result of such election. All necessary expenses incurred by the commissioner or by the inspectors appointed by him shall be certified by him to and paid by the company.

Terms Used In Indiana Code 27-1-12-23

  • articles of incorporation: includes both the original articles of incorporation and any and all amendments thereto, except where the original articles of incorporation only are expressly referred to, and includes articles of merger, consolidation and reinsurance, and in case of corporations, heretofore organized, articles of reorganization filed in the office of the secretary of state, and all amendments thereto. See Indiana Code 27-1-2-3
  • Bequest: Property gifted by will.
  • capital: means the aggregate amount paid in on the shares of capital stock of a corporation issued and outstanding. See Indiana Code 27-1-2-3
  • capital stock: means the aggregate amount of the par value of all shares of capital stock. See Indiana Code 27-1-2-3
  • Commissioner: means the "insurance commissioner" of this state. See Indiana Code 27-1-2-3
  • Gift: A voluntary transfer or conveyance of property without consideration, or for less than full and adequate consideration based on fair market value.
  • Insurance: means a contract of insurance or an agreement by which one (1) party, for a consideration, promises to pay money or its equivalent or to do an act valuable to the insured upon the destruction, loss or injury of something in which the other party has a pecuniary interest, or in consideration of a price paid, adequate to the risk, becomes security to the other against loss by certain specified risks; to grant indemnity or security against loss for a consideration. See Indiana Code 27-1-2-3
  • life insurance company: means any company making one or more of the kinds of insurance set out and defined in class 1(a) of IC 27-1-5-1. See Indiana Code 27-1-2-3
  • person: includes individuals, corporations, associations, and partnerships; personal pronoun includes all genders; the singular includes the plural and the plural includes the singular. See Indiana Code 27-1-2-3
  • policyholder: means one who is a holder of a contract of insurance in an insurance company. See Indiana Code 27-1-2-3
  • principal office: means that office maintained by the corporation in this state, the address of which is required by the provisions of this article to be kept on file in the office of the department. See Indiana Code 27-1-2-3
  • Quorum: The number of legislators that must be present to do business.
  • Verified: when applied to pleadings, means supported by oath or affirmation in writing. See Indiana Code 1-1-4-5
  • Year: means a calendar year, unless otherwise expressed. See Indiana Code 1-1-4-5
     (b) Such plan shall be submitted to and approved by the commissioner. The commissioner shall not approve said plan unless in his opinion the rights and interests of all policyholders are preserved. In carrying out said plan a company may acquire any shares of its own stock by gift, bequest or purchase. Any shares thus acquired shall be held in trust for the policyholders of the company as hereinafter provided and shall be assigned and transferred on the books of the company to three (3) trustees who shall hold in trust and shall vote them at all company meetings until all the capital stock of such company is acquired, when the entire capital stock shall be cancelled, and thereupon, the company shall be and become a mutual life insurance company without capital stock. Such trustees shall be appointed and vacancies shall be filled as provided in the plan adopted under the provisions of this section. Such trustees shall file with the company a verified acceptance of their appointments and declarations that they will faithfully discharge their duties as such trustees. All dividends and other sums acquired, after paying the necessary expenses of executing said trust, shall be immediately repaid to said company for the benefit of all who are or may become policyholders of said company and entitled to participate in the profits thereof, and shall be added to and become a part of the surplus earned by said company and be apportionable accordingly as a part of said surplus among said policyholders.

Formerly: Acts 1935, c.162, s.162.