§ 25-21,284.Terms, defined.

Article 21: Special Proceedings and Actions · Last amended 2010 · Last verified July 22, 2026

In one sentenceThis section defines the key terms in the Successor Asbestos-Related Liability Act: asbestos claim, corporation, successor asbestos-related liabilities, successor corporation, and transferor, setting up the framework the Act’s liability cap depends on.

Full Text of § 25-21,284

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For purposes of the Successor Asbestos-Related Liability Act:

(1) Asbestos claim means any claim, wherever or whenever made, for damages, losses, indemnification, contribution, or other relief arising out of, based on, or in any way related to asbestos, including:

(a) Any claim involving the health effects of exposure to asbestos, including a claim for personal injury or death, mental or emotional injury, risk of disease or other injury, or the costs of medical monitoring or surveillance;

(b) Any claim made by or on behalf of any person exposed to asbestos, or a representative, spouse, parent, child, or other relative of the person; and

(2) Corporation means a corporation for profit, including a domestic corporation organized under the laws of this state or a foreign corporation organized under laws other than the laws of this state;

(3) Successor asbestos-related liabilities means liabilities, whether known or unknown, asserted or unasserted, absolute or contingent, accrued or unaccrued, liquidated or unliquidated, or due or to become due, that are related to asbestos claims and were assumed or incurred by a corporation as a result of or in connection with a merger or consolidation, or the plan of merger or consolidation related to the merger or consolidation with or into another corporation, or that are related in any way to asbestos claims based on the exercise of control or the ownership of stock of the corporation before the merger or consolidation. Successor asbestos-related liabilities includes liabilities that, after the time of the merger or consolidation for which the fair market value of total gross assets is determined under section 25-21,287, were or are paid or otherwise discharged, or committed to be paid or otherwise discharged, by or on behalf of the corporation, or by a successor corporation, or by or on behalf of a transferor, in connection with settlements, judgments, or other discharges in this state or another jurisdiction;

(4) Successor corporation means a corporation that assumes or incurs or has assumed or incurred successor asbestos-related liabilities that is a successor and became a successor before January 1, 1972, or is any of that successor corporation's successors; and

(5) Transferor means a corporation from which successor asbestos-related liabilities are or were assumed or incurred.

End

Source

Laws 2010, LB763, § 2.

Plain-English Summary

The Successor Asbestos-Related Liability Act turns on a handful of carefully defined terms, and section 25-21,284 supplies them. An asbestos claim covers any claim for damages, losses, indemnification, contribution, or other relief connected to asbestos, whether it involves personal injury or death from exposure, a claim by a relative of an exposed person, or a claim over damage caused by installing, having, or removing asbestos. Corporation means a for-profit corporation, whether organized in Nebraska or elsewhere.

The Act’s central concept is successor asbestos-related liabilities: obligations tied to asbestos claims that a corporation assumed or incurred through a merger or consolidation, or through owning or controlling stock in another corporation before that merger, regardless of whether the liability is known or unknown, fixed or contingent, or already paid. A successor corporation is a corporation that assumed or incurred those liabilities and became a successor before January 1, 1972, along with any of that corporation’s own later successors. A transferor is the corporation from which the successor liabilities originally came. Together, these definitions mark out exactly which mergers, and which resulting corporations, the Act’s liability cap in section 25-21,286 applies to.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does “asbestos claim” mean under this Act?

Any claim, wherever or whenever made, for damages, losses, indemnification, contribution, or other relief connected to asbestos, including claims for personal injury, death, emotional injury, medical monitoring, or property damage from installing, having, or removing asbestos.

What is a “successor corporation” under section 25-21,284?

A corporation that assumed or incurred successor asbestos-related liabilities and became a successor before January 1, 1972, along with any of that corporation’s later successors.

Why does the date January 1, 1972, matter for this definition?

A corporation counts as a successor corporation under the Act only if it became a successor before that date, which limits the Act’s liability cap to older mergers and consolidations.

What is a “transferor”?

The corporation from which successor asbestos-related liabilities were originally assumed or incurred.

Does “successor asbestos-related liabilities” include claims that have already been paid?

Yes. The definition covers liabilities whether known or unknown, asserted or unasserted, and whether or not already paid or discharged, as long as they trace back to the merger or consolidation described in the Act.

Source & verification. Section text and the amendment-history citation are reproduced verbatim from the Nebraska Legislature, Revisor of Statutes, enacted by the Nebraska Legislature. Last verified July 22, 2026. · Official source

Also known as: asbestos claim definition nebraskasuccessor corporation definition asbestos acttransferor definition asbestos liabilitysuccessor asbestos-related liabilities meaningnebraska asbestos act key terms