Full Text of SB2947 98th General Assembly
SB2947 98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
| | 98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2013 and 2014 SB2947 Introduced 2/4/2014, by Sen. William R. Haine SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: |
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215 ILCS 155/16 | from Ch. 73, par. 1416 |
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Amends the Title Insurance Act. With regard to the requirement that every application for registration of a title insurance agent shall include a signed and notarized affidavit of the applicant, affirming that the applicant and every owner, officer, director, principal, member, or
manager of the applicant has never been convicted or pled guilty to any felony or misdemeanor involving a crime of
theft or dishonesty, provides that, alternatively, the affidavit may accurately disclose any such felony or misdemeanor involving a crime of
theft or dishonesty. Provides that no person who has had a conviction or pled guilty to any felony or
misdemeanor involving theft or dishonesty may be registered by a title insurance company without a written notification (rather than a separate written notification) to the Secretary disclosing the conviction or plea.
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| | A BILL FOR |
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| 1 | | AN ACT concerning regulation.
| 2 | | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
| 3 | | represented in the General Assembly:
| 4 | | Section 5. The Title Insurance Act is amended by changing | 5 | | Section 16 as follows:
| 6 | | (215 ILCS 155/16) (from Ch. 73, par. 1416)
| 7 | | Sec. 16. Title insurance agents.
| 8 | | (a) No person, firm, partnership, association, corporation | 9 | | or other
legal entity shall act as or hold itself out to be a | 10 | | title insurance agent
unless duly registered by a title | 11 | | insurance company with the Secretary.
| 12 | | (b) Each application for registration shall be made on a | 13 | | form specified
by the Secretary and prepared in duplicate by | 14 | | each title insurance company
which the agent represents. The | 15 | | title insurance company shall retain the
copy of the | 16 | | application and forward the original to the Secretary with the
| 17 | | appropriate fee.
| 18 | | (c) Every applicant for registration, except a firm, | 19 | | partnership,
association, limited liability company, or | 20 | | corporation, must be 18 years or more of age. Included in every | 21 | | application for registration of a title insurance agent, | 22 | | including a firm, partnership,
association, limited liability | 23 | | company, or corporation, shall be an affidavit of the applicant |
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| 1 | | title insurance agent, signed and notarized in front
of a | 2 | | notary public, affirming that the applicant and every owner, | 3 | | officer, director, principal, member, or
manager of the | 4 | | applicant has never been convicted or pled guilty to any felony | 5 | | or misdemeanor involving a crime of
theft or dishonesty or | 6 | | otherwise accurately disclosing any such felony or misdemeanor | 7 | | involving a crime of
theft or dishonesty . No person who has had | 8 | | a conviction or pled guilty to any felony or
misdemeanor | 9 | | involving theft or dishonesty may be registered by a title | 10 | | insurance company without a separate written notification to | 11 | | the Secretary disclosing the conviction or plea, and no such
| 12 | | person may serve as an owner, officer, director, principal, or | 13 | | manager of any registered title insurance
agent without the | 14 | | written permission of the Secretary.
| 15 | | (d) Registration shall be made annually by a filing with | 16 | | the Secretary;
supplemental registrations for new title | 17 | | insurance agents to be added
between annual filings shall be | 18 | | made from time to time in the manner
provided by the Secretary; | 19 | | registrations shall remain in effect unless
revoked or | 20 | | suspended by the Secretary or
voluntarily withdrawn by the
| 21 | | registrant or the title insurance company.
| 22 | | (e) Funds deposited in connection with any escrows, | 23 | | settlements, or closings shall be deposited in a separate | 24 | | fiduciary trust account or accounts in a bank or other | 25 | | financial institution insured by an agency of the federal | 26 | | government unless the instructions provide otherwise. The |
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| 1 | | funds shall be the property of the person or persons entitled | 2 | | thereto under the provisions of the escrow, settlement, or | 3 | | closing and shall be segregated by escrow, settlement, or | 4 | | closing in the records of the escrow agent. The funds shall not | 5 | | be subject to any debts of the escrowee and shall be used only | 6 | | in accordance with the terms of the individual escrow, | 7 | | settlement, or closing under which the funds were accepted. | 8 | | Interest received on funds deposited with the escrow agent | 9 | | in connection with any escrow, settlement, or closing shall be | 10 | | paid to the depositing party unless the instructions provide | 11 | | otherwise. | 12 | | The escrow agent shall maintain separate records of all | 13 | | receipts and disbursements of escrow, settlement, or closing | 14 | | funds. | 15 | | The escrow agent shall comply with any rules adopted by the | 16 | | Secretary pertaining to escrow, settlement, or closing | 17 | | transactions. | 18 | | (f) A title insurance agent shall not act as an escrow | 19 | | agent in a nonresidential real property transaction where the | 20 | | amount of settlement funds on deposit with the escrow agent is | 21 | | less than $2,000,000 or in a residential real property | 22 | | transaction unless the title insurance agent, title insurance | 23 | | company, or another authorized title insurance agent has | 24 | | committed for the issuance of title insurance in that | 25 | | transaction and the title insurance agent is authorized to act | 26 | | as an escrow agent on behalf of the title insurance company for |
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| 1 | | which the commitment for title insurance has been issued. The | 2 | | authorization under the preceding sentence shall be given | 3 | | either (1) by an agency contract with the title insurance | 4 | | company which contract, in compliance with the requirements set | 5 | | forth in subsection (g) of this Section, authorizes the title | 6 | | insurance agent to act as an escrow agent on behalf of the | 7 | | title insurance company or (2) by a closing protection letter | 8 | | in compliance with the requirements set forth in Section 16.1 | 9 | | of this Act, issued by the title insurance company to the | 10 | | seller, buyer, borrower, and lender. A closing protection | 11 | | letter shall not be issued by a title insurance agent. The | 12 | | provisions of this subsection (f) shall not apply to the | 13 | | authority of a title insurance agent to act as an escrow agent | 14 | | under subsection (g) of Section 17 of this Act. | 15 | | (g) If an agency contract between the title insurance | 16 | | company and the title insurance agent is the source of the | 17 | | authority under subsection (f) of this Section for a title | 18 | | insurance agent to act as escrow agent for a real property | 19 | | transaction, then the agency contract shall provide for no less | 20 | | protection from the title insurance company to all parties to | 21 | | the real property transaction than the title insurance company | 22 | | would have provided to those parties had the title insurance | 23 | | company issued a closing protection letter in conformity with | 24 | | Section 16.1 of this Act. | 25 | | (h) A title insurance company shall be liable for the acts | 26 | | or omissions of its title insurance agent as an escrow agent if |
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| 1 | | the title insurance company has authorized the title insurance | 2 | | agent under subsections (f) and (g) of this Section 16 and only | 3 | | to the extent of the liability undertaken by the title | 4 | | insurance company in the agency agreement or closing protection | 5 | | letter. The liability, if any, of the title insurance agent to | 6 | | the title insurance company for acts and omissions of the title | 7 | | insurance agent as an escrow agent shall not be limited or | 8 | | otherwise modified because the title insurance company has | 9 | | provided closing protection to a party or parties to a real | 10 | | property transaction escrow, settlement, or closing. The | 11 | | escrow agent shall not charge a fee for protection provided by | 12 | | a title insurance company to parties to real property | 13 | | transactions under subsections (f) and (g) of this Section 16 | 14 | | and Section 16.1, but shall collect from the parties the fee | 15 | | charged by the title insurance company and shall promptly remit | 16 | | the fee to the title insurance company. The title insurance | 17 | | company may charge the parties a reasonable fee for protection | 18 | | provided pursuant to subsections (f) and (g) of this Section 16 | 19 | | and Section 16.1 and shall not pay any portion of the fee to | 20 | | the escrow agent. The payment of any portion of the fee to the | 21 | | escrow agent by the title insurance company, shall be deemed a | 22 | | prohibited inducement or compensation in violation of Section | 23 | | 24 of this Act. | 24 | | (i) The Secretary shall adopt and amend such rules as may | 25 | | be required for the proper administration and enforcement of | 26 | | this Section 16 consistent with the federal Real Estate |
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| 1 | | Settlement Procedures Act and Section 24 of this Act. | 2 | | (Source: P.A. 98-398, eff. 1-1-14.)
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