A Declaration of Homestead is a type of protection for a person’s primary residence. The Declaration of Homestead is a form that is filed at the Registry of Deeds in the county where the property is located, referencing the title/deed to the property. It allows homeowners in Massachusetts to protect their property up to five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) of the value from civil attachment.
The debate over the unauthorized practice of law in Massachusetts took a new twist this week.
A 2009 ruling in favor of National Real Estate Information Services Inc. (NREIS) in an unauthorized practice of law case brought by the Real Estate Bar Association for Massachusetts Inc. (REBA) has been vacated by the First Circuit Court of Appeals.
According to the June 21 order to vacate, the appeals court said it would let the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court decide what constitutes the practice of law in the state encompassing all the interconnected activities of a real estate conveyance and the issuance of title insurance, and whether or not non-attorneys can conduct “witness” or “notary” closings. The appeals court said the district court construed the sparse state case law and declared the practices at issue did not constitute the unauthorized practice of law.
This decision will impact who can capture title insurance premiums in Massachusetts. Last year, $198 million in title premiums were generated in the state.
In 2009, United States District Judge Joseph L. Tauro entered an order of summary judgment in favor of NREIS, enjoining REBA from enforcing its interpretation of the practice of law.
In the court’s decision, Tauro agreed with NREIS’ position that the definition of the practice of law as set forth by REBA was a violation of the Dormant Commerce Clause of the United States Constitution. The order to vacate also reverses the district court’s decision on NREIS’s dormant Commerce Clause counterclaim. NREIS claimed that requiring attorneys to conduct closings was an unconstitutional restraint on trade that would result in higher closing costs.
REBA had filed the original lawsuit in 2006 in an attempt to restrict the provision of title, settlement and closing services by Massachusetts attorneys only. The decision marked the first time a Federal District Court has ruled on the issue of unauthorized practice of law as it relates to settlement services.
Massachusetts privacy law requires businesses to implement security controls to protect systems containing Massachusetts resident’s personal information from data loss.
What is Mass 201 CMR 17?
In an effort to protect Massachusetts residents from the rising incidence of fraud and identity theft from data loss, the State of Massachusetts has implemented aggressive regulatory requirements to protect personal information. The state now requires mandatory compliance with 201 CMR 17.00 – Standards for the Protection of Personal Information of Residents of the Commonwealth (also known as just 201 CMR 17, or the Massachusetts Privacy Law). Building on California’s landmark security regulation SB-1386, Massachusetts Privacy Law establishes a minimum standard to be met for the protection of Massachusetts resident’s personal information (PI) contained in both paper and electronic records. For the purpose of being compliant with the new Massachusetts data privacy law, PI is defined as a resident’s first name and last name or first initial and last name in combination with any one or more of the following data elements that relate to the resident:
The Massachusetts data privacy law has set a new level in state security laws by regulating both private and public sector entities that handle Massachusetts resident’s sensitive data, regardless of where that entity is located. The law is intended to bring entities into alignment with both federal and industry security laws, including the Safeguards Rule under the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA) enforced by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards (PCI-DSS) security standards overseen by the PCI Security Standards Council. Its process and technical controls are aimed at preventing criminal activity from causing data breaches of either paper or electronic records containing PI. The requirement of securing electronic records includes PI on databases, laptops, applications, portable devices, and just about any other system in which electronic PI data can be either in transit or at rest.
Who needs Mass 201 CMR 17?
All persons, corporations, associations, partnerships or other legal entities with systems containing Massachusetts resident’s personal information in transit or at rest are responsible for complying with the 201 CMR 17 regulations by March 1, 2010. However, the regulations alsor equire businesses to complete internal and external security risk assessments prior to the effective date. The regulation applies regardless of whether the entities or the data is either inside or outside state borders, and applies equally to private and public sector organizations.
On February 23rd at 6:30pm, Jeff St. Laurent will be hosting one of his most impactful seminars to date.
Most people never finish what they start… and what is worse than that, of the people who do “finish,” most never give everything they have and are left with an empty feeling inside.
The lessons and strategies you will learn in this seminar come from a trialing journey Jeff experienced as a competitive athlete last year.
If you want to learn how to set yourself up for success, create true clarity on how you can move forward and create massive action…
Click here to learn more and register
n February 23rd at 6:30pm, I will be hosting one of my most impactful seminars to date.
Most people never finish what they start… and what is worse than that, of the people who do “finish,” most never give everything they have and are left with an empty feeling inside.
The lessons and strategies you will learn in this seminar come from a trialing journey I experienced as a competitive athlete last year.
If you want to learn how to set yourself up for success, create true clarity on how you can move forward and create massive action…
An index of over 300 home builders, which shows the demand for new homes. The index runs from 0-100, so a rating of 50 would mean that demand for new homes was average. Data used in the index is provided by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB).
The index is not as comprehensive as formal housing reports like new home sales or MBA mortgage applications, the index is more like a supplemental indicator for predicting housing trends.
The NAHB Housing Market Index is used to provide general insight to where the housing market is heading. Because new home sales reflect ‘big ticket’ items that require construction and investment, the housing market is often considered an indicator of the direction of the economy as a whole. Growth in the housing market usually means subsequent spending, generating demand for goods and services and the employees who provide them.
The number of people filing new claims for unemployment benefits in the U.S. fell in the latest week to its lowest level in nearly 18 months, a sign the labor market may be turning a corner.
Initial claims for unemployment benefits fell by 22,000 to a seasonally adjusted 432,000 in the week ended December 26.