Customer Reviews

Stratagems And Conspiracies To Defraud Life Insurance Companies: An Authentic Record Of Remarkable Cases

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This classic study by John B. Lewis and Charles C. Bombaugh was first written in 1878, revised in 1896 and has now been re-issued by Kessinger Publishing. Lewis and Bombaugh researched and reported upon more than 100 life insurance fraud cases which took place during the 18th and 19th Centuries in the United States, Great Britain and Europe. This book classifies life insurance fraud cases into eight types with a chapter devoted to each type: 1) pretended deaths, 2) speculations on death, 3) disappearances, 4) homocides, 5) "Black Widow" poisonings, 6) suicides, 7) suspected fraud schemes and 8) self-mutilations.

This book is remarkably easy to read and is, in fact, quite difficult to put down. This is due in part to the authors' lucid (and sometimes florid) writing style and in part to the subject matter. My only criticism of this book is its lack of verifiable bibliographic and archival references.

I recommend this book for legal historians, insurance law scholars and those interested in criminal psychology. This book may also find use as a sourcebook for those interested in writing true crime novels. I am delighted that Kessinger Publishing saw fit to re-issue this classic insurance fraud study which was previously available only to those with access to The Making of Modern Law database and those lucky enough to have a well-preserved copy. I hope that a legal scholar in the near future will update and expand upon this fascinating and worthwhile study.