Connecticut General Statutes 22a-452d – Limitation on liability of innocent landowners: Definitions
As used in this section, § 22a-452e and § 22a-433:
Terms Used In Connecticut General Statutes 22a-452d
- Bequest: Property gifted by will.
- Decedent: A deceased person.
- discharge: means the emission of any water, substance or material into the waters of the state, whether or not such substance causes pollution. See Connecticut General Statutes 22a-423
- Executor: A male person named in a will to carry out the decedent
- person: means any individual, partnership, association, firm, limited liability company, corporation or other entity, except a municipality, and includes the federal government, the state or any instrumentality of the state, and any officer or governing or managing body of any partnership, association, firm or corporation or any member or manager of a limited liability company. See Connecticut General Statutes 22a-423
- pollution: means harmful thermal effect or the contamination or rendering unclean or impure or prejudicial to public health of any waters of the state by reason of any wastes or other material discharged or deposited therein by any public or private sewer or otherwise so as directly or indirectly to come in contact with any waters. See Connecticut General Statutes 22a-423
(1) “Innocent landowner” means: (A) A person holding an interest in real estate, other than a security interest, that, while owned by that person, is subject to a spill or discharge if the spill or discharge is caused solely by any one of or any combination of the following: (i) An act of God; (ii) an act of war; (iii) an act or omission of a third party other than an employee, agent or lessee of the landowner or other than one whose act or omission occurs in connection with a contractual relationship, existing directly or indirectly, with the landowner, unless there was a reasonably foreseeable threat of pollution or the landowner knew or had reason to know of the act or omission and failed to take reasonable steps to prevent the spill or discharge, or (iv) an act or omission occurring in connection with a contractual arrangement arising from a published tariff and acceptance for carriage by a common carrier by rail, unless there was a reasonably foreseeable threat of pollution or the landowner knew, or had reason to know, of the act or omission and failed to take reasonable steps to prevent the spill or discharge; or (B) a person who acquires an interest in real estate, other than a security interest, after the date of a spill or discharge if the person is not otherwise liable for the spill or discharge as the result of actions taken before the acquisition and, at the time of acquisition, the person (i) does not know and has no reason to know of the spill or discharge, and inquires, consistent with good commercial or customary practices, into the previous uses of the property; (ii) is a government entity; (iii) acquires the interest in real estate by inheritance or bequest; or (iv) acquires the interest in real estate as an executor or administrator of a decedent‘s estate.
(2) “Discharge” means a discharge causing pollution, as those terms are defined in § 22a-423.
(3) “Spill” means a spill as defined in § 22a-452c.