G & M Motor Company v. Thompson
Supreme Court of Oklahoma
567 P.2d 80 (1977)
Wayne Thompson embezzled $78,856.45 from G & M Motor Company (plaintiff) before his 1970 death and used part of the stolen funds to pay premiums on life-insurance policies; Motor Company sued, and the trial court impressed a constructive trust on real and personal property plus a proportionate share of the insurance proceeds paid to Thompson's innocent widow, Shirley (defendant), matching the share of premiums paid with embezzled money. The court of appeals affirmed the property trust but modified the insurance trust to cover only the actual embezzled premium amounts plus interest, and Shirley appealed further.
Whether a constructive trust may be imposed on a pro rata share of life-insurance proceeds where only a portion of the premiums were paid with wrongfully obtained funds, and the beneficiary is innocent of the wrongdoing.