Nebraska couple lost $59,759 home over $588 tax debt; compensation claim revived

A legal fight over homeownership and tax liens in Nebraska reached a major turning point when the state's highest court revived a compensation claim from a couple who lost their mortgage-free home over a relatively small tax debt. Kevin Fair and his wife, Terry, owned a home in Scotts Bluff County with no mortgage or other liens. The property was valued by the county at $59,759. After the couple failed to pay $588.21 in property taxes, the county sold the tax debt to Continental Resources. The dispute eventually reached the US Supreme Court before returning to the Nebraska Supreme Court.