76-551 Disciplinary actions; grounds; unfair practices. - Nebraska Statutes

76-551. Disciplinary actions; grounds; unfair practices.The board shall have the power (1) to revoke a certificate of registration or certificate of authority, (2) to suspend a certificate of registration or certificate of authority for a specific period not to exceed a year, (3) to censure a registered abstracter or holder of a certificate of authority, and (4) to issue a letter of reprimand to a registered abstracter or holder of a certificate of authority.Such disciplinary actions may be invoked after a hearing as provided in section 76-552 for a violation of the Abstracters Act, including unfair practices, upon the conviction of the holder of a certificate of a felony, or if the board finds a holder to be guilty of habitual carelessness or of fraudulent practices in the conduct of the business of abstracting.Unfair practices which are a violation of the Abstracters Act shall include:(a) Failure to disclose an agency relationship to or interest in any title insurance business, law firm, real estate or insurance business, or any other business or enterprise to a client in the event that the holder of the certificate of registration or the holder of the certificate of authority would receive a fee directly or indirectly from such a relationship or interest during a transaction involving real estate in which the holder is retained to provide abstracting services for such client; and(b) Paying or allowing a rebate of fees for abstracting services, which unfair practice specifically includes rendering a statement or bill to be passed on to third parties which does not reflect the true amount charged for such services or charging an amount from which a rebate is to be paid.The board shall also have the power after a hearing as provided in section 76-552 to revoke or suspend a certificate of authority for failure to have employed a registered abstracter or for otherwise violating the Abstracters Act. SourceLaws 1965, c. 453, § 18, p. 1443; Laws 1969, c. 615, § 12, p. 2499; Laws 1976, LB 310, § 1; R.S.1943, (1981), § 76-526; Laws 1985, LB 47, § 21.Annotations"Preparing written reports of title to real property" constitutes the "business of abstracting" for purposes of the Abstracters Act only when done in exchange for a fee or other valuable consideration. So construed, the Abstracters Act is not unconstitutionally overbroad on its face. State v. Rabourn, 269 Neb. 499, 693 N.W.2d 291 (2005).