§6-12-4. Limitation on bond requirements in litigation involving master settlement agreement signatories, successors, and affiliates.

(a) In civil litigation under any legal theory involving a signatory, a successor of a signatory, or an affiliate of a signatory to the tobacco master settlement agreement, as defined in Section 6-12-2, the supersedeas bond to be furnished to stay the execution of the judgment during the entire course of appellate review shall be set in accordance with applicable laws or court rules, except that the total supersedeas bond that is required of all appellants collectively shall not exceed one hundred twenty-five million dollars ($125,000,000), regardless of the amount of the judgment.

(b) Notwithstanding subsection (a), if an appellee proves by a preponderance of the evidence that an appellant is dissipating assets outside the ordinary course of business to avoid payment of a judgment, a court may require the appellant to post a supersedeas bond in an amount up to the total amount of the judgment.

(c) This section shall apply to all actions pending or filed on or before February 24, 2006, and to all actions filed after February 24, 2006.

(Act 2006-94, p. 124, §1.)