Neb. Rev. Stat. §§ 44-1981

Current with changes through the 2024 First Special Legislative Session

Section 44-1981 - Terms, defined

For purposes of the Title Insurers Act:

(1) Abstract of title means a compilation in orderly arrangement of the materials and facts of record affecting the title to a specific piece of land, issued under a certificate certifying to the matters contained in such compilation;

(2) Affiliate means a specific person that directly, or indirectly through one or more intermediaries, controls or is controlled by or is under common control with the person specified;

(3) Bona fide employee of the title insurer means an individual who devotes substantially all of his or her time to performing services on behalf of a title insurer and whose compensation for the services is in the form of salary or its equivalent paid by the title insurer;

(4) Control, including the terms controlling, controlled by, and under common control with, means the possession, direct or indirect, of the power to direct or cause the direction of the management and policies of a person, whether through the ownership of voting securities, by contract other than a commercial contract for goods or nonmanagement services, or otherwise, unless the power is the result of an official position or corporate office held by the person. Control is presumed to exist if a person, directly or indirectly, owns, controls, holds with the power to vote, or holds proxies representing ten percent or more of the voting securities of another person. This presumption may be rebutted by a showing that control does not exist in fact. The director may determine, after furnishing all persons in interest notice and opportunity to be heard and making specific findings of fact to support the determination, that control exists in fact, notwithstanding the absence of a presumption to that effect;

(5) Direct operations means that portion of a title insurer's operations which are attributable to title insurance business written by a bona fide employee of the title insurer;

(6) Director means the Director of Insurance;

(7) Escrow means written instruments, money, or other items deposited by one party with a depository, escrow agent, or escrow for delivery to another party upon the performance of a specified condition or the happening of a certain event;

(8) Escrow, settlement, or closing fee means the consideration for supervising or handling the actual execution, delivery, or recording of transfer and lien documents and for disbursing funds;

(9) Foreign title insurer means any title insurer incorporated or organized under the laws of any other state of the United States, the District of Columbia, or any other jurisdiction of the United States;

(10) Net retained liability means the total liability retained by a title insurer for a single risk, after taking into account any ceded liability and collateral, acceptable to the director, maintained by the title insurer;

(11) Non-United-States title insurer means any title insurer incorporated or organized under the laws of any foreign nation or any foreign province or territory;

(12) Person means any natural person, partnership, association, cooperative, corporation, trust, or other legal entity;

(13) Producer of title insurance business has the same meaning as in section 44-19,108;

(14) Qualified financial institution means an institution that is:

(a) Organized or, in the case of a United States branch or agency office of a foreign banking organization, licensed under the laws of the United States or any state and has been granted authority to operate with fiduciary powers;

(b) Regulated, supervised, and examined by federal or state authorities having regulatory authority over banks and trust companies;

(c) Insured by the appropriate federal entity; and

(d) Qualified under any additional rules and regulations adopted and promulgated by the director;

(15) Referral has the same meaning as in section 44-19,108;

(16) Security or security deposit means funds or other property received by a title insurer as collateral to secure an indemnitor's obligation under an indemnity agreement pursuant to which the title insurer is granted a perfected security interest in the collateral in exchange for agreeing to provide coverage in a title insurance policy for a specific title exception to coverage;

(17) Title insurance agent has the same meaning as in section 44-19,108;

(18) Title insurance business or business of title insurance means:

(a) Issuing as a title insurer or offering to issue as a title insurer a title insurance policy;

(b) Transacting or proposing to transact by a title insurer any of the following activities when conducted or performed in contemplation of or in conjunction with the issuance of a title insurance policy:

(i) Soliciting or negotiating the issuance of a title insurance policy;

(ii) Guaranteeing, warranting, or otherwise insuring the correctness of title searches for all instruments affecting titles to real property, any interest in real property, cooperative units, and proprietary leases and for all liens or charges affecting the same;

(iii) Handling of escrows, settlements, or closings;

(iv) Executing title insurance policies;

(v) Effecting contracts of reinsurance;

(vi) Searching or examining titles; or

(vii) Guaranteeing, warranting, or otherwise insuring the correctness of the search or filing results obtained from public registries established for determining liens or security interests in personal property or fixtures;

(c) Guaranteeing, warranting, or insuring searches or examinations of title to real property or any interest in real property;

(d) Guaranteeing or warranting the status of title as to ownership of or liens on real property by any person other than the principals to the transaction;

(e) Transacting or proposing to transact any business substantially equivalent to any of the activities listed in this subdivision in a manner designed to evade the provisions of the Title Insurers Act;

(f) Guaranteeing, warranting, or insuring the search or filing results obtained from public registries established for determining liens or security interests in personal property or fixtures; or

(g) Guaranteeing or warranting adverse claims to title, liens, encumbrances upon, or security interests in personal property or fixtures by any person other than the principals to the transaction;

(19) Title insurance commitment means a preliminary commitment, report, or binder issued prior to the issuance of a title insurance policy containing the terms, conditions, exceptions, and any other matters incorporated by reference under which the title insurer is willing to issue its title insurance policy;

(20) Title insurance policy means:

(a) A contract insuring or indemnifying owners of, or other persons lawfully interested in, real property or any interest in real property, against loss or damage arising from any or all of the following conditions existing on or before the policy date and not excepted or excluded:

(i) Defects in or liens or encumbrances on the insured title;

(ii) Unmarketability of the insured title;

(iii) Invalidity, lack of priority, or unenforceability of liens or encumbrances on the stated property;

(iv) Lack of legal right of access to the land; or

(v) Unenforceability of rights in title to the land; or

(b) A contract insuring or indemnifying owners of personal property or secured parties or others interested therein against loss or damage pertaining to adverse claims to title, liens, encumbrances upon, or security interests in personal property or fixtures, including the existence or nonexistence of the attachment, perfection, or priority of security interests in personal property or fixtures under the Uniform Commercial Code or other laws, rules, or regulations establishing procedures for the attachment, perfection, or priority of security interests in personal property or fixtures, or the accuracy or completeness of the search or filing results obtained from public registries established for determining liens or security interests in personal property or fixtures, and arising from any or all of the following conditions not excepted or excluded:

(i) Other liens or encumbrances on the stated personal property or fixtures;

(ii) Invalidity, lack of priority, or unenforceability of liens or other security interests in the stated personal property or fixtures; or

(iii) Any other matters relating directly or indirectly to the lien status of the stated personal property or fixtures;

(21) Title insurer means any insurer organized under the laws of this state for the purpose of transacting the business of title insurance and any foreign or non-United-States title insurer authorized to transact the business of title insurance in this state; and

(22) Title plant means a set of records consisting of documents, maps, surveys, or entries affecting title to real property or any interest in or encumbrance on the property which have been filed or recorded in the jurisdiction for which the title plant is established or maintained.

Neb. Rev. Stat. §§ 44-1981

Laws 1997, LB 53, § 4; Laws 2001, LB 360, § 9; Laws 2015, LB 180, § 2.

Amended by Laws 2015, LB 180,§ 2, eff. 8/30/2015.