SB1396 99TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

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99TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2015 and 2016
SB1396

Introduced 2/20/2015, by Sen. William R. Haine

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

New Act

Creates the Civil Justice Funding Act. Establishes requirements for civil justice funding contracts, prohibitions on civil justice funding companies, disclosure requirements, limitations on fees, prohibitions on attorneys, and a requirement to register with the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation before engaging in civil justice funding. Effective July 1, 2015.

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning regulation.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Civil Justice Funding Act.

Section 5. Definitions. As used in this Act:

"Advertise" means publishing or disseminating any written, electronic, or printed communication or any communication by means of recorded telephone messages or transmitted on radio, television, the Internet, or similar communications media, including film strips, motion pictures, and videos, published, disseminated, circulated, or placed before the public, directly or indirectly, for the purpose of inducing a consumer to enter into a civil justice funding.

"Charges" means the amount of money to be paid to the civil justice funding company by or on behalf of the consumer above the funded amount provided by or on behalf of the company to an Illinois consumer pursuant to this Act. Charges include all administrative, origination, underwriting, or other fees, no matter how denominated.

"Civil justice funding" means a non-recourse transaction in which a civil justice funding company purchases and a consumer assigns to the company a contingent right to receive an amount of the potential proceeds of a settlement, judgment, award, or verdict obtained in the consumer's legal claim.

"Civil justice funding company" or "company" means a person or entity that enters into a civil justice funding with an Illinois consumer. "Civil justice funding company" or "company" does not include:

(1) an immediate family member of the consumer;

(2) a bank, lender, financing entity, or other special purpose entity:

(A) that provides financing to a civil justice funding company; or

(B) to which a civil justice funding company grants a security interest or transfers any rights or interest in a civil justice funding; and

(3) an attorney or accountant who provides services to a consumer.

"Consumer" means a natural person who has a pending legal claim and who (1) resides or is domiciled in Illinois or (2) has a legal claim in Illinois.

"Funded amount" means the amount of moneys provided to or on behalf of the consumer in the civil justice funding.

"Funded amount" does not include charges.

"Funding date" means the date on which the funded amount is transferred to the consumer by the civil justice funding company either by personal delivery or via wire, ACH, or other electronic means or mailed by insured, certified, or registered United States mail.

"Immediate family member" means a parent; sibling; child by blood, adoption, or marriage; spouse; grandparent or grandchild.

"Legal claim" means a bona fide civil claim or cause of action.

"Resolution date" means the date the amount funded to the consumer, plus the agreed upon charges, are delivered to the civil justice funding company.

Section 10. Contract requirements; right of rescission.

(a) All civil justice fundings shall meet the following requirements:

(1) the contract shall be completely filled in when presented to the consumer for signature;

(2) the contract shall contain, in bold and boxed type, a right of rescission, allowing the consumer to cancel the contract without penalty or further obligation if, within 5 business days after the funding date, the consumer either:

(A) returns to the civil justice funding company the full amount of the disbursed funds by delivering the company's uncashed check to the company's office in person; or

(B) mails, by insured, certified, or registered United States mail, to the address specified in the contract, a notice of cancellation and includes in such mailing a return of the full amount of disbursed funds in the form of the company's uncashed check or a registered or certified check or money order; and

(3) the contract shall contain the initials of the consumer on each page.

(b) The contract shall contain a written acknowledgment by the attorney retained by the consumer in the legal claim that attests to the following: (1) to the best of the attorney's knowledge, all the costs and charges relating to the civil justice funding have been disclosed to the consumer; (2) the attorney is being paid on a contingency basis pursuant to a written fee agreement; (3) all proceeds of the legal claim will be disbursed via either the trust account of the attorney or a settlement fund established to receive the proceeds of the legal claim on behalf of the consumer; (4) the attorney is following the written instructions of the consumer with regard to the civil justice funding; and (5) the attorney has not received a referral fee or other consideration from the civil justice funding company in connection with the civil justice funding, nor will the attorney receive such fee or other consideration in the future.

(c) If the acknowledgment required in subsection (b) of this Section is not be completed by the attorney retained the consumer in the legal claim, the contract shall be null and void. The contract remains valid and enforceable if the consumer terminates the initial attorney or retains a new attorney with respect to the legal claim.

Section 15. Civil justice funding company prohibitions. A civil justice funding company shall not:

(1) pay or offer to pay commissions, referral fees, or other forms of consideration to any attorney, law firm, medical provider, chiropractor, physical therapist, or any of their employees for referring a consumer to the company;

(2) accept any commissions, referral fees, rebates, or other forms of consideration from an attorney, law firm, medical provider, chiropractor, physical therapist, or any of their employees;

(3) intentionally advertise materially false or misleading information regarding its products or services;

(4) refer, in furtherance of an initial legal funding, a customer or potential customer to a specific attorney, law firm, medical provider, chiropractor, physical therapist, or any of their employees; however, if a customer needs legal representation, the company may refer the customer to a local or state bar association referral service;

(5) fail to promptly supply a copy of the executed contract to the attorney for the consumer;

(6) knowingly provide funding to a consumer who has previously assigned or sold a portion of the consumer's right to proceeds from his or her legal claim without first making payment to or purchasing a prior unsatisfied civil justice funding company's entire funded amount and contracted charges, unless a lesser amount is otherwise agreed to in writing by the civil justice funding companies, except that multiple companies may agree to contemporaneously provide funding to a consumer provided that the consumer and the consumer's attorney consent to the arrangement in writing;

(7) receive any right to or make any decisions with respect to the conduct of the underlying legal claim or any settlement or resolution thereof; the right to make such decisions shall remain solely with the consumer and the attorney in the legal claim; or

(8) knowingly pay or offer to pay for court costs, filing fees, or attorneys' fees, either during or after the resolution of the legal claim, using funds from the civil justice funding transaction.

Section 20. Contracted amounts. A civil justice funding company shall require the contracted amount to be paid to the company to be set as a predetermined amount based upon intervals of time from the funding date through the resolution date, and not be determined as a percentage of the recovery from the legal claim.

Section 25. Fees.

(a) If the consumer elects to make monthly payments to the civil justice funding company, the funding fee charged by the civil justice funding company shall not exceed 36% of the funded amount in a 12-month period, and the consumer shall make monthly payments to the civil justice funding company.

(b) If the consumer elects to not make monthly payments or defer payment to the civil justice legal funding company, the funding fee charged by the civil justice funding company shall not exceed 36% of the funded amount in a 12-month period, and in addition to this fee, the civil justice funding company may charge a deferral fee of up to 3% of the funded amount per month.

(c) In addition to the funding and deferral fees set forth in subsections (a) and (b), a civil justice funding company shall also collect a one-time fee of $500 in each civil justice funding to defray the ordinary costs of opening, administering, and terminating a civil justice funding, and the civil justice funding company may assess a fee for the expedited delivery of funds, provided that the civil justice funding company shall offer the consumer a free delivery option.

Section 30. Disclosures.

(a) All civil justice funding contracts shall contain the disclosures specified in this Section, which shall constitute material terms of the contract. Unless otherwise specified, the disclosures shall be typed in at least 12-point bold type font and be placed clearly and conspicuously within the contract, as follows:

(1) On the front page under appropriate headings, language specifying:

(A) the funded amount to be paid to the consumer by the civil justice funding company;

(B) an itemization of one-time charges;

(C) the total amount to be assigned by the consumer to the company, including the funded amount and all charges; and

(D) a payment schedule to include the funded amount and charges, listing all dates and the amount due at the end of each 180-day period from the funding date, until the date the maximum amount due to the company by the consumer to satisfy the amount due pursuant to the contract.

(2) Pursuant to the provisions set forth in paragraph (2) of subsection (a) of Section 10, within the body of the contract: "Consumer's Right to Cancellation: You may cancel this contract without penalty or further obligation within 5 business days after the funding date if you either:

(A) return to the civil justice funding company the full amount of the disbursed funds by delivering the company's uncashed check to the company's office in person; or

(B) mail, by insured, certified, or registered United States mail, to the company at the address specified in the contract, a notice of cancellation and include in such mailing a return of the full amount of disbursed funds in the form of the company's uncashed check or a registered or certified check or money order.".

(3) The civil justice funding company shall have no role in deciding whether, when, and how much the legal claim is settled for; however, the consumer and consumer's attorney must notify the company of the outcome of the legal claim by settlement or adjudication prior to the resolution date. The company may seek updated information about the status of the legal claim, but in no event shall the company interfere with the independent professional judgment of the attorney in the handling of the legal claim or any settlement thereof.

(4) Within the body of the contract, in all capital letters in at least 12-point bold type font contained within a box: "THE FUNDED AMOUNT AND AGREED UPON CHARGES SHALL BE PAID ONLY FROM THE PROCEEDS OF YOUR LEGAL CLAIM, AND SHALL BE PAID ONLY TO THE EXTENT THAT THERE ARE AVAILABLE PROCEEDS FROM YOUR LEGAL CLAIM. YOU WILL NOT OWE [INSERT NAME OF THE CIVIL JUSTICE FUNDING COMPANY] ANYTHING IF THERE ARE NO PROCEEDS FROM YOUR LEGAL CLAIM, UNLESS YOU OR YOUR ATTORNEY HAVE VIOLATED ANY MATERIAL TERM OF THIS CONTRACT OR YOU HAVE COMMITTED FRAUD AGAINST THE CIVIL JUSTICE FUNDING COMPANY.".

(5) Located immediately above the place on the contract where the consumer's signature is required, in 12-point font: "Do not sign this contract before you read it completely or if it contains any blank spaces. You are entitled to a completely filled-in copy of the contract. Before you sign this contract, you should obtain the advice of an attorney. Depending on the circumstances, you may want to consult a tax, public or private benefits planning, or financial professional. You acknowledge that your attorney in the legal claim has provided no tax, public or private benefit planning, or financial advice regarding this transaction.".

Section 35. Violations.

(a) Nothing in this Act shall be construed to restrict the exercise of powers or the performance of the duties of the Attorney General that he or she is authorized to exercise or perform by law.

(b) If a court of competent jurisdiction determines that a civil justice funding company has intentionally violated the provisions of this statute with regard to a specific civil justice funding, the civil justice funding company shall only be entitled to recover the funded amount provided to the consumer in such specific civil justice funding and shall not be entitled to any additional charges.

Section 40. Assignability; liens.

(a) The contingent right to receive an amount of the potential proceeds of a legal claim is assignable by a consumer.

(b) Nothing contained in this Act shall be construed to cause any civil justice funding transaction conforming to this Act to be deemed a loan or to be subject to any of the provisions governing loans contained in this Act. A civil justice funding transaction that complies with this Act is not subject to any other statutory or regulatory provisions governing loans or investment contracts, except as provided by federal law. To the extent that this Act conflicts with any other law, this Act supersedes the other law for the purposes of regulating civil justice fundings in Illinois.

(c) Only attorney's liens related to the legal claim or Medicare or other statutory liens related to the legal claim shall take priority over any lien of the civil justice funding company. All other liens shall take priority by normal operation of law.

Section 45. Attorney prohibitions. An attorney or law firm retained by the consumer in the legal claim shall not have a financial interest in the civil justice funding company offering civil justice funding to that consumer. Additionally, any attorney who has referred the consumer to his or her retained attorney shall not have a financial interest in the civil justice funding company offering civil justice funding to that consumer.

Section 50. Effect of communication on privileges. No communication between the consumer's attorney in the legal claim and the civil justice funding company as it pertains to the civil justice funding shall limit, waive, or abrogate the scope or nature of any statutory or common-law privilege, including the work-product doctrine and the attorney-client privilege.

Section 55. Registration; forms.

(a) Unless a civil justice funding company has first registered under this Act, the company may not engage in the business of civil justice funding in this State.

(b) An applicant's registration must be filed in the manner prescribed by the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation and must contain the information the Department requires to make an evaluation of the character and fitness of the applicant company. The initial application must be accompanied by a $250 fee. A renewal registration must include a $200 fee. A registration must be renewed every 2 years and expires on September 30th.

(c) A certificate of registration may not be issued unless the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation, upon investigation, finds that the character and fitness of the applicant company, and of the officers and directors thereof, are such as to warrant belief that the business will be operated honestly and fairly within the purposes of this Act.

(d) Every registrant shall also, at the time of filing such application, file with the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation, if the Department so requires, a bond satisfactory to the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation in an amount not to exceed $50,000. In lieu of the bond at the option of the registrant, the registrant may post an irrevocable letter of credit. The terms of the bond must run concurrent with the period of time during which the registration will be in effect. The bond must provide that the registrant will faithfully conform to and abide by the provisions of this Act and to all rules lawfully made by the Department under this Act and to any such person or persons any and all amounts of money that may become due or owing to the State or to such person or persons from the registrant under and by virtue of this Act during the period for which the bond is given.

(e) Upon written request, the applicant is entitled to a hearing on the question of the applicant's qualifications for a registration if:

(1) the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation has notified the applicant in writing that the application has been denied; or

(2) the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation has not issued a registration within 60 days after the application for the registration was filed.

A request for a hearing may not be made more than 30 days after the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation has mailed a written notice to the applicant that the application has been denied and stating in substance the Department's findings supporting denial of the application.

(f) Notwithstanding the prior approval requirement of subsection (a) of this Section, a civil justice funding company that registered with the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation between the effective date of this Act and December 31, 2016 may engage in civil justice funding while the company's registration is awaiting approval by the Department. All funding agreements prior to the effective date of this Act are not subject to the terms of this Act.

Section 60. Preexisting fundings. Nothing in this Act shall in any way affect or invalidate any civil justice fundings previously effectuated prior to the effective date of this Act.

Section 97. Severability. The provisions of this Act are severable under Section 1.31 of the Statute on Statutes.

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect July 1, 2015.