District of Columbia Code
Chapter 47 - Provisions Relating to All Life Insurance Companies
§ 31–4716. Rights of parties under life policies

(a) When a policy of insurance, whether heretofore or hereafter issued, is effected by any person on his own life or on another life in favor of some person other than himself having an insurable interest therein, or, except in cases of transfer with intent to defraud creditors, if a policy of life insurance is assigned or in any way made payable to any such person, the lawful beneficiary or assignee thereof, other than the insured or the person so effecting such insurance or executors or administrators of such insured or the person so effecting such insurance, shall be entitled to its proceeds and avails against the creditors and representatives of the insured and of the person effecting such insurance whether or not the right to change the beneficiary is reserved or permitted and whether or not the policy is made payable to the person whose life is insured, if the beneficiary or assignee shall predecease such person; provided, that subject to the statute of limitations the amount of any premiums for said insurance paid with intent to defraud creditors, with interest thereon, shall inure to their benefit from the proceeds of the policy, but the company issuing the policy shall be discharged of all liability thereon by payment of its proceeds in accordance with its terms, unless before such payment the company shall have written notice by or in behalf of a creditor of a claim to recover for transfer made or premiums paid with intent to defraud creditors with specifications of the amount claimed.
(b) A charitable, benevolent, educational, governmental, or religious institution that is described in § 501(c)(3) or § 170(b)(1)(A) of the Internal Revenue Code or a trust for the benefit of the institution that is qualified as a charitable remainder trust under § 664 or a pooled income fund under § 642(c)(5) of the Internal Revenue Code may acquire an insurable interest in the life of an individual if:
(1) The institution or trust is designated irrevocably as the beneficiary of the insurance proceeds or designated as the owner of the life insurance policy, or both;
(2) The application for the insurance contract is procured and signed by the individual whose life is to be insured; and
(3) Notwithstanding paragraph (1) of this subsection, the insured pays the premiums for the insurance policy for at least 3 years following the issuance of the policy.
(c) Subsection (b) of this section does not prohibit the insured from retaining all ownership rights conferred by the insurance policy, except the right to loan or borrow value during the premium-paying period or at maturity.
(June 19, 1934, 48 Stat. 1175, ch. 672, ch. V, § 16; Aug. 1, 1947, 61 Stat. 711, ch. 427; Mar. 16, 1995, D.C. Law 10-211, § 2, 41 DCR 8027.)
1981 Ed., § 35-521.
1973 Ed., § 35-716.
Sections 501(c)(3), 170(b)(1)(A), 664 and 642(c)(5) of the Internal Revenue Code, referred to in (b), are codified as 26 U.S.C. §§ 501(c)(3), 170(b)(1)(A), 664 and 642(c)(5), respectively.
Application of 10-211: Section 3 of D.C. Law 10-211 provided that the act shall be applied retroactively, thereby validating any insurance contract authorized under this act if the individual on whose life the insurance contract was taken is alive on March 16, 1995, even though the insurance contract was entered into before March 16, 1995, and the beneficiary or owner of the policy continues to pay the premiums until maturity.

Structure District of Columbia Code

District of Columbia Code

Title 31 - Insurance and Securities

Chapter 47 - Provisions Relating to All Life Insurance Companies

§ 31–4701. Valuation of reserves by Commissioner

§ 31–4702. Companies issuing both participating and nonparticipating policies

§ 31–4703. Life policies — Required provisions

§ 31–4704. Life policies — Prohibited provisions

§ 31–4705. Annuity and pure endowment contracts; forms to be filed and approved; required provisions; applications, riders and endorsements

§ 31–4705.01. Nonforfeiture benefits and cash surrender values

§ 31–4705.02. Standard nonforfeiture law — In general

§ 31–4705.03. Standard nonforfeiture law — Individual deferred annuities

§ 31–4705.04. Loan provisions in policies

§ 31–4706. Extension of time for payment of premiums

§ 31–4707. Ascertainment of loan indebtedness

§ 31–4708. Filing and approval of life policy forms

§ 31–4709. Policy provisions required by foreign government entities

§ 31–4710. Group policies — General requirements. [Repealed]

§ 31–4711. Group policies — Required provisions

§ 31–4711.01. Group policies — Right to, and notice of, issuance of individual policy

§ 31–4712. Accident and sickness policies

§ 31–4713. Prohibited activities — Securities operations. [Repealed]

§ 31–4714. Prohibited activities—Misrepresentations. [Repealed]

§ 31–4715. Prohibited activities—Discriminations. [Repealed]

§ 31–4716. Rights of parties under life policies

§ 31–4716.01. Exemption from legal process — Disability benefits

§ 31–4717. Exemption from legal process — Group life policy or proceeds

§ 31–4718. Fraudulent statements or representations against companies. [Repealed]

§ 31–4719. Authority to hold proceeds under trust or agreement

§ 31–4720. Calculations of premiums and reserves

§ 31–4721. Acceptance and recordation of premiums on industrial life or sick-benefit policies

§ 31–4722. Industrial life policies — Required provisions

§ 31–4723. Industrial life policies — Prohibited provisions

§ 31–4724. Access to psychologists or optometrists under group health insurance policy

§ 31–4725. Policy language simplification standards

§ 31–4726. Commissioner’s review of test

§ 31–4727. Applicability of §§ 31-4725 through 31-4730

§ 31–4728. Regulations

§ 31–4729. Construction of §§ 31-4725 through 31-4730

§ 31–4730. Operative dates of §§ 31-4725 through 31-4730

§ 31–4731. Duty of insurers to compare names of insureds with death master file and to locate beneficiaries