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The Legal Description Edition
August 4, 2014
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N.Y. DFS proposes regulations to implement title agent licensing law
Posted Date: Thursday, July 24, 2014
The New York Department of Financial Services (DFS) published for comment in the NYS Register proposed regulations to implement requirements of recently adopted state law authorizing the DFS to regulate title insurance agents. The proposed regulation addresses, among other things, affiliated business relationships, disclosures and the use of title closers.
The proposed regulation would prohibit title insurance corporations and title agents from accepting title insurance business referred from an affiliated person unless the title insurance corporation has significant and multiple sources of business. A title insurance agent or title insurance corporation could not require an affiliated person to refer a specified amount of title insurance to the corporation or agent.
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Keep aware of the CFPB- Part 1
Posted Date: Monday, July 14, 2014
There are many reasons you should keep aware of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and its actions. One particular reason is because the bureau is concerned about you — or at least your interactions with consumers. If what you are doing is violating a federal consumer financial law, the CFPB is going to take interest and likely take action. With the amount of power this agency has, that should concern anyone who is working under the CFPB’s purview. Even if you think the bureau can’t touch you, there’s a chance it can.
When the bureau opened its doors in July 2011, it took over the regulatory authority for consumer financial laws. You may be wondering why you or your company would be subject to CFPB enforcement if you see yourself as falling into one of the agency’s covered persons categories. The issue is, however, that if anything you do falls within the purview of one or more of those 19 laws, then the bureau’s authority can reach you.
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Keep aware of the CFPB-Part 2
Posted Date: Wednesday, July 16, 2014
In part one of this two-part series, expert attorneys explained why you need to keep an eye on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. It has a long-reaching investigatory arm, and even if you think you are beyond its grasp, you might not be. If you do come under an investigation, the next concern is what an enforcement action could look like. In part two, they review the CFPB’s extensive enforcement powers.
One significant weapon the agency has in its arsenal is the ability to commence its own civil actions.
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Property owner demands indemnification in adverse possession case
Posted Date: Tuesday, June 10, 2014
A Wisconsin property owner sued its title underwriter for failing to indemnify or defend him in a property dispute involving adverse possession. After the state trial court granted summary judgment in favor of the insured, the property owner appealed.
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Title company, insured dispute coverage over right-of-way
Posted Date: Thursday, June 5, 2014
The U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado heard arguments on cross-motions for summary judgment seeking a declaratory judgment as to whether a right-of-way over federal land negotiated by a title insurer constitutes a right of access as required by the title insurance policy held by an insured. The insured argued that this right-of-way isn’t a right at all because it is revocable and expires after 30 years.
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CFPB proposes policy to allow consumers to share complaint
Posted Date: Tuesday, July 22, 2014
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is proposing a new policy that would empower consumers to publicly voice their complaints about consumer financial products and services. When consumers submit a complaint to the CFPB, they would have the option to share their account of what happened in the CFPB’s public-facing Consumer Complaint Database. Publishing consumer narratives would provide important context to the complaint, help the public to detect specific trends in the market, aid consumer decision-making, and drive improved consumer service.
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Governor signs attorney/client privilege amendment to title insurance act
Posted Date: Tuesday, July 22, 2014
Rhode Island Gov. Lincoln Chafee has signed a bill that addresses attorney/client privilege in title insurance by providing that a title producer who is also an attorney may identify and redact any documents containing privileged materials that are requested by a title insurer in an audit.
The bill, SB 2816, was introduced by Sens. Marc Cote, D-Woonsocket/North Smithfield, and Roger Picard, D-Woonsocket/Cumberland.
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New solutions help automate closing process
Posted Date: Thursday, July 24, 2014
Black Knight Financial Services announced the development of Closing Insight, a set of web-based solutions designed to help lenders address the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) Integrated Mortgage Disclosures rule and to automate the numerous multi-party processes required to close a loan. Closing Insight will be delivered by RealEC Technologies, a division of Black Knight Financial Services, through the RealEC Loan Quality Gateway. The RealEC Loan Quality Gateway is an open technology platform that provides integration, data management, decisioning support and workflow management through a 24/7 data exchange that connects more than 15,000 of the mortgage industry’s service and solution providers.
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Ill. title company owner sentenced for mishandling closing funds
Posted Date: Tuesday, July 22, 2014
Karen Strasser Steinke, 65, of Millstadt, Ill., was sentenced to 21 months imprisonment followed by three years supervised release as a result of her convictions for wire fraud in a scheme to defraud clients of Metro East Title, and structuring of financial transactions to avoid currency transaction reporting requirements, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois Stephen Wigginton, announced. Restitution was made in full to the victims prior to the sentencing.
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NNA creates national database of notary laws, regulations
Posted Date: Thursday, July 24, 2014
The National Notary Association created the first nationwide, easy-to-search database of laws that affect notaries public. The database was created to address changing state laws as well as new regulations set by government agencies including the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. This free tool will help notaries and companies that employ Notaries find the laws they need to be aware of and comply with.
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Florida lender pleads guilty to mortgage fraud conspiracy
Posted Date: Thursday, July 24, 2014
Wifredo Ferrer, U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Florida, George Piro, special agent in charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Miami Field Office, and Drew Breakspear, commissioner, Florida Office of Financial Regulation, announce that Karl Oreste, 56, of Miramar, Fla., pled guilty before U.S. District Judge Robert Scola Jr., to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud affecting a financial institution.
Sentencing has been scheduled for Nov. 14, 2014. At sentencing, Oreste faces a maximum possible statutory sentence of up to 30 years in prison.
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Keep aware of the CFPB
Posted Date: Tuesday, August 5, 2014
There are many reasons you should keep aware of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and its actions. One particular reason is because the bureau is concerned about you — or at least your interactions with consumers. If what you are doing is violating a federal consumer financial law, the CFPB is going to take interest and likely take action. With the amount of power this agency has, that should concern anyone who is working under the CFPB’s purview. Even if you think the bureau can’t touch you, there’s a chance it can.
When the bureau opened its doors in July 2011, it took over the regulatory authority for 19 consumer financial laws. You may be wondering why you or your company would be subject to CFPB enforcement if you see yourself as falling into one of the agency’s covered persons categories. The issue is, however, that if anything you do falls within the purview of one or more of those 19 laws, then the bureau’s authority can reach you.
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NextDeal offers free encryption software
Posted Date: Tuesday, August 5, 2014
With the concern in the industry regarding cyber security and the protection on non-public personal information, this announcement is welcome.
NextDeal (formerly Digital Docs.net) a developer of Software as a Service (SaaS) solutions designed to assist settlement agents to grow their revenue, is making its encryption software, SafeSend, available to the settlement services industry at no cost.
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N.Y. DFS proposes regulations to implement title agent licensing law
Posted Date: Tuesday, August 5, 2014
The New York Department of Financial Services (DFS) published for comment in the NYS Register proposed regulations to implement requirements of recently adopted state law authorizing the DFS to regulate title insurance agents.
The DFS proposed to amend Parts 20 (Regulation 9, 18 and 29), 29 (Regulation 87), 30 (Regulation 194), 34 (Regulation 125) and the addition of Part 35 (Regulation 206). The proposal was published in the NYS Register on July 23. The comment period is open until Sept. 9.
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Bank sues title insurer for bad faith, negligence under CPL
Posted Date: Thursday, July 24, 2014
After discovering that an issuing title agent prepared fraudulent documents in a mortgage transaction, an insured bank filed a claim with its title insurer under a closing protection letter. When the title insurer denied the claim, the bank sued for bad faith and negligence. The title insurer eventually moved to dismiss the claims.
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Industry mourns the loss of thought leader
Posted Date: Thursday, July 24, 2014
Todd Bjorklund, a leader in the real estate and mortgage industries, passed away on July 19 at the age of 56. Bjorklund was an entrepreneur, having started his first business when he was only 18 years old.
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Tampa developer gets 10 years for flipping scheme
Posted Date: Wednesday, July 16, 2014
U.S. District Judge Elizabeth Kovachevich sentenced Joseph Daniele, 42, Tampa, Fla., to 10 years and 1 month in federal prison for conspiracy to commit wire fraud. As part of his sentence, the court also entered a money judgment in the amount of $7.46 million. Daniele pleaded guilty on May 29, 2013.
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NextDeal offers free email encryption software
Posted Date: Wednesday, July 16, 2014
NextDeal (formerly Digital Docs.net) a developer of Software as a Service solutions designed to assist settlement agents to grow their revenue, is making its encryption software, SafeSend, available to the settlement services industry at no cost. Read on for more details.
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Four Minnesota men indicted for wire fraud conspiracy
Posted Date: Monday, July 14, 2014
A federal grand jury has recently returned an indictment charging four men in connection with the Split Rock Realty mortgage fraud investigation. On July 9, Thomas Edward Rosensteel III, 41, of Excelsior, Minn., Robert Scott “Rod” Aslesen, 65, of Little Canada, Minn., Justin Joseph Christenson, 34, of East Bethel, Minn., and Dale Russell Wurzinger, 57, of Burnsville, Minn., were each charged with eight counts of wire fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud.
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