(a) In a case where the owner or operator is in bankruptcy, reorganization, or arrangement pursuant to the Federal Bankruptcy Code or where (with reasonable diligence) jurisdiction in any [environmental court] cannot be obtained over an owner or operator likely to be solvent at the time of judgment, any claim arising from conduct for which evidence of financial responsibility must be provided under this chapter or rules adopted pursuant to this chapter may be asserted directly against the guarantor providing evidence of financial responsibility. In the case of any action pursuant to this section, the guarantor shall be entitled to invoke all rights and defenses which would have been available to the owner or operator by the claimant and which would have been available to the guarantor if an action had been brought against the guarantor by the owner or operator.
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Terms Used In Hawaii Revised Statutes 342J-10.6

  • Bankruptcy: Refers to statutes and judicial proceedings involving persons or businesses that cannot pay their debts and seek the assistance of the court in getting a fresh start. Under the protection of the bankruptcy court, debtors may discharge their debts, perhaps by paying a portion of each debt. Bankruptcy judges preside over these proceedings.
  • Common law: The legal system that originated in England and is now in use in the United States. It is based on judicial decisions rather than legislative action.
  • Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
  • Financial responsibility: means a trust fund, surety bond, insurance, corporate guarantee, or letter of credit provided by owners or operators of hazardous waste treatment, storage, and disposal facilities to assure proper closure, post closure, corrective action, and compensation for injuries to people or damage to property. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 342J-2
  • Guarantor: A party who agrees to be responsible for the payment of another party's debts should that party default. Source: OCC
  • Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
  • Operator: means the person responsible for the overall operation of a facility. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 342J-2
  • Owner: means the person who owns the facility or part of the facility. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 342J-2
  • Person: means any individual, partnership, firm, joint stock company, association, public or private corporation, federal agency, the State or any of its political subdivisions, any state and any of its political subdivisions, trust, estate, interstate body, or any other legal entity. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 342J-2
  • Settlement: Parties to a lawsuit resolve their difference without having a trial. Settlements often involve the payment of compensation by one party in satisfaction of the other party's claims.
(b) The total liability of any guarantor shall be limited to the aggregate amount which the guarantor has provided as evidence of financial responsibility to the owner or operator under this chapter or rules adopted pursuant to this chapter. Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit any other statutory, contractual or common law liability of a guarantor to its owner or operator including, but not limited to, the liability of the guarantor for bad faith either in negotiations or in failing to negotiate the settlement of any claim. Nothing in this section shall be construed to diminish the liability of any person under chapter 128D or other applicable law.
(c) For the purpose of this section, the term “guarantor” means any person, other than the owner or operator, who provides evidence of financial responsibility for an owner or operator under this chapter or rules adopted pursuant to this chapter.

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