Title 17, Title 17: CORPORATIONS AND INSTITUTIONS FOR FINANCE AND INSURANCE

17:46B-11. Prohibition upon guaranteeing mortgages and completion A title insurance company shall not, in any manner whatsoever, guarantee the payment of the principal or the interest of bonds or other obligations secured by mortgages upon real property; nor shall a title insuran…

17:46B-12. Prohibition against transacting other kinds of insurance; prohibition against other kinds of insurance companies transacting title insurance A title insurance company shall not transact, underwrite or issue any kind of insurance other than title insurance; nor shall ti…

17:46B-13. Prohibition against the practice of law No title insurance company and no title insurance agent shall engage in the practice of law or render legal services, legal advice or legal opinions. Nothing in this act shall be construed to permit or authorize acts by a title i…

17:46B-14. Statutory premium reserve a. Every domestic insurance company shall, in addition to other reserves, establish and maintain a reserve to be known as the "statutory premium reserve" for title insurance, which shall, at all times for all purposes, be deemed and shall cons…

17:46B-15. Amount of statutory premium reserve; release thereof a. The statutory premium reserve of every domestic title insurance company shall consist of: (1) The amount of the reserve held as of the effective date of this act, pursuant to or under permission granted by P.L.193…

17:46B-16. Maintenance of the statutory premium reserve If by reason of any cause, other than depreciation in the market value of investments, the amount of the assets of a title insurance company held as investments of its statutory premium reserve should on any date be less tha…

17:46B-17. Use of the statutory premium reserve on liquidation, dissolution or insolvency a. If a title insurance company becomes insolvent, or is in the process of liquidation or dissolution, or in the possession of the commissioner: (1) Such amount of the assets of such title i…

17:46B-18. Reserve for unpaid losses and loss expense a. Each domestic title insurance company shall at all times establish and maintain, in addition to other reserves, a reserve: (1) Against unpaid losses, and (2) against loss expense, and shall calculate such reserves by making…

17:46B-19. Net retained liability The net retained liability of any title insurance company under any single insurance risk as defined in subsections j. and k. of section 1 of this act shall not exceed the net amount remaining after deducting from the sum of its capital, surplus,…

17:46B-2 Short title. 2. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as "The Title Insurance Act of 1974." L.1975,c.106,s.2.

17:46B-20. Power to reinsure Any title insurance company authorized to engage in the business of title insurance in this State may cede reinsurance of all or any part of its liability under one or more of its policies or contracts or reinsurance agreements to any title insurance …

17:46B-21. Minimum capital An amount equivalent to the minimum capital requirements as defined in subsection a. of section 7 shall be retained as cash on hand or on deposit in banks, or shall be invested in the following classes of investments; provided, however, that the aggrega…

17:46B-22. Funds in excess of minimum capital, other than statutory premium reserve Funds over and above minimum capital, other than the statutory premium reserve, may be retained as cash on hand or on deposit in banks, or may be invested in the following classes of investments: …

17:46B-22.1. Valuation of securities held by title insurance company; violations; penalties 6. Except as otherwise required by the commissioner, securities held by a title insurance company transacting business in this State in accordance with P.L.1975, c.106 (C.17:46B-1 et seq.)…

17:46B-23. Statutory premium reserve The statutory premium reserve of a title insurance company may be held as cash on hand or on deposit in banks, or shall be invested only in those classes of investments authorized by subsections a. through f., i., j., k., m., n. and o. , of se…

17:46B-24. Investments acquired before effective date Any investment of a title insurance company lawfully acquired before the effective date of this act and which but for this section would be considered ineligible as an investment on such effective date shall be disposed of wit…

17:46B-25. Requisites for foreign and alien title insurance companies to do business Any title insurance company organized under the laws of another state or foreign government shall be licensed to transact a title insurance business within this State only if such company is and …

17:46B-26. Foreign and alien title insurance companies No title insurance company not incorporated or organized under the laws of this State, but authorized to transact business herein, shall make, write, place or cause to be made, written or placed any policy or contract of insu…

17:46B-27. Mergers and consolidations of title insurance companies a. A title insurance company organized and incorporated under the laws of this State may merge, be merged by or consolidated with, one or more title insurance companies whether or not so incorporated, by complying…

17:46B-3. Application of act The provisions of this act shall apply to all title insurance companies, title insurance rating organizations, title insurance agents, applicants for title insurance, policyholders and to all persons and business entities engaged in the business of ti…

17:46B-30.1 Licensure as insurance producers for a title insurance agency. 1. Except for a State or federally chartered bank, savings bank, savings and loan association or its subsidiary or any officer or employee of any of the foregoing, no other lending institution, mortgage se…

17:46B-34. Commissions; no right to pay No title insurance company and no title insurance agent shall pay, allow or give, or offer to pay, allow or give, directly or indirectly, any commission or part of its fee or charge or any other consideration as an inducement or compensatio…

17:46B-35. Rebates or reduced fees a. No title insurance company and no title insurance agent shall pay, allow or give, or offer to pay, allow or give, directly or indirectly, as an inducement to insure, or after insurance has been affected, any rebate, discount, abatement, credi…

17:46B-36. Examination of records The commissioner, if he has reason to believe that any title insurance agent has violated or is violating any of the provisions of sections 34 and 35 of this act, shall forthwith examine said title insurance agent's books of account and record an…

17:46B-37. Additional penalty Any person who pays, allows or gives, or offers to pay, allow or give, or who receives or offers to receive any commission, rebate, discount, abatement, credit or reduction of premium or any special favor or advantage or valuable consideration or ind…

17:46B-38. Permitted division of fees Nothing in this act prohibits the division of fees and charges between or among two or more title insurance companies or between or among one or more title insurance companies and one or more title insurance agents representing the same title…

17:46B-4. Severability The provisions of this act shall be severable, and, if any of its provisions shall be held to be unconstitutional, the decision of the court shall not affect the validity of the remaining provisions of this act. L.1975, c. 106, s. 4, eff. May 29, 1975.

17:46B-40. Enforcement The commissioner shall have the full authority, and it shall be his duty, to enforce the provisions of sections 34 through 39 of this act ^1^ and to carry out the full intent thereof through the adoption of appropriate rules and regulations and the issuance…

17:46B-41. General provisions The purposes of sections 41 to 52, inclusive, of this act are to promote the public welfare by regulating title insurance rates to the end that they shall not be excessive, inadequate or unfairly discriminatory and to authorize cooperative action bet…

17:46B-42. Rate filing a. Every title insurance company shall file with the commissioner its schedule of fees, every manual of classifications, rules and plans pertaining thereto, and every modification of any of the foregoing which it proposes to use in this State. Every such fi…

17:46B-43. Justification for rates A rate filing shall be accompanied by a statement of the title insurance company or title insurance rating organization making the filing, setting forth the basis upon which the rate was fixed and the fees are to be computed. Any filing may be j…

17:46B-44. Proposing of rates a. Every title insurance company that shall propose its own rates, and every title insurance rating organization, shall propose rates that are not excessive nor inadequate for the safety and soundness of any title insurer, which do not unfairly discr…

17:46B-45. Approval or disapproval of filings a. If the commissioner shall find in his review of rate filings that said filings provide for, result in, or produce rates that are not unreasonably high, and are not inadequate for the safeness and soundness of the insurer, and are n…

17:46B-46. Title insurance rating organizations a. A corporation, an unincorporated association, a partnership or an individual, whether located within or outside this State, may make application to the commissioner for license as a rating organization for title insurance compani…

17:46B-47. Deviations Every member of or subscriber to a title insurance rating organization shall adhere to the filings made on its behalf by such organization, except that any title insurance company which is a member of or subscriber to such a rating organization may file with…

17:46B-48. Appeal by minority Any member of or subscriber to a title insurance rating organization may appeal to the commissioner from any action or decision of such rating organization in approving or rejecting any proposed change in or addition to the filings of such rating org…

17:46B-49. Rate administration; authority and duties of commissioner; rules and regulations a. The commissioner shall promulgate reasonable rules and statistical plans, reasonably adapted to each of the rating systems on file with him, which may be modified from time to time, and…

17:46B-5. Compliance with act required On and after the effective date of this act, only a title insurance company shall underwrite or issue a policy of title insurance. No person, firm, partnership, association, corporation, cooperative, joint-stock company or trust shall engage…

17:46B-50. False or misleading information No title insurance company or title insurance agent shall willfully withhold information from, or knowingly give false or misleading information to the commissioner, or to any title insurance rating organization, of which the title insur…

17:46B-51. Penalties The commissioner may, if he finds that any title insurance rating organization, title insurance company or title insurance agent has violated any provision of this act, impose a penalty of not more than $1,000.00 for each such violation, but if he finds such …

17:46B-52. Hearing procedure a. Any title insurance company, title insurance rating organization or person aggrieved by any action of the commissioner, or by any rule or regulation adopted and promulgated by the commissioner, shall have the right to file a complaint with the comm…

17:46B-53. Existing filings and hearings continued All title insurance manuals of classifications, rules and rates, rating plans and modifications thereof filed under any repealed act shall be deemed to have been filed under this act, and all title insurance rating organizations …

17:46B-54. Forms of policies and other contracts of title insurance Every title insurance company shall file with the commissioner all forms of title policies and other contracts of title insurance before the same shall be issued. Any such filing may be made by a title insurance …

17:46B-55. Annual statements of title insurance companies; form and content 54. Annual statements of title insurance companies; form and content. a. Every title insurance company which is authorized to do a title insurance business in this State, shall file in the office of the c…

17:46B-56. Records Every domestic title insurance company shall, except as hereinafter provided, keep and maintain at its principal office in this State: a. Its charter and bylaws, b. its books of account, c. a record containing the names and addresses of its stockholders, the nu…

17:46B-58. Examination of title insurance companies; when authorized or required a. The commissioner may make an examination into the affairs of any title insurance company authorized to do a title insurance business in this State as often as he deems it expedient for the protect…