Bill Text: IL HB4555 | 2023-2024 | 103rd General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Amends the Title Insurance Act. Provides that no person, firm, partnership, association, corporation, or other legal entity shall act as or hold itself out to be a title insurance agent without first procuring a certificate of authority from the Secretary of Financial and Professional Regulation (rather than unless duly registered by a title insurance company with the Secretary). Provides that a certificate of authority shall remain in effect unless revoked or suspended by the Secretary or voluntarily surrendered by the holder, or when the holder of the certificate of authority is no longer authorized as a title insurance agent of a title insurance company. Provides that every applicant that is not duly registered as a title insurance agent on the effective date of the amendatory Act shall comply with specified requirements. Sets forth provisions concerning applications for a certificate of authority and makes changes concerning the powers of the Secretary. Provides that the Secretary shall maintain a database of title insurance agents in good standing on a publicly accessible website that any person may use to verify the authority of a particular title insurance agent. Sets forth duties applicable to transactions involving residential real property for title insurance companies, title insurance agents, and independent escrowees. Makes other changes. Effective immediately.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-31 - Referred to Rules Committee [HB4555 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2023-HB4555-Introduced.html

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103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2023 and 2024 HB4555 Introduced , by Rep. Ann M. Williams SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
215 ILCS 155/3 from Ch. 73, par. 1403
215 ILCS 155/12 from Ch. 73, par. 1412
215 ILCS 155/15.2 new
215 ILCS 155/16 from Ch. 73, par. 1416
215 ILCS 155/16.2 new
215 ILCS 155/17.2 new
Amends the Title Insurance Act. Provides that no person, firm, partnership, association, corporation, or other legal entity shall act as or hold itself out to be a title insurance agent without first procuring a certificate of authority from the Secretary of Financial and Professional Regulation (rather than unless duly registered by a title insurance company with the Secretary). Provides that a certificate of authority shall remain in effect unless revoked or suspended by the Secretary or voluntarily surrendered by the holder, or when the holder of the certificate of authority is no longer authorized as a title insurance agent of a title insurance company. Provides that every applicant that is not duly registered as a title insurance agent on the effective date of the amendatory Act shall comply with specified requirements. Sets forth provisions concerning applications for a certificate of authority and makes changes concerning the powers of the Secretary. Provides that the Secretary shall maintain a database of title insurance agents in good standing on a publicly accessible website that any person may use to verify the authority of a particular title insurance agent. Sets forth duties applicable to transactions involving residential real property for title insurance companies, title insurance agents, and independent escrowees. Makes other changes. Effective immediately.
LRB103 37017 RPS 67132 b
A BILL FOR
HB4555 LRB103 37017 RPS 67132 b
AN ACT concerning regulation.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 5. The Title Insurance Act is amended by changing
Sections 3, 12, and 16 and by adding Sections 15.2, 16.2, and
17.2 as follows:
(215 ILCS 155/3) (from Ch. 73, par. 1403)
Sec. 3. As used in this Act, the words and phrases
following shall have the following meanings unless the context
requires otherwise:
(1) "Title insurance business" or "business of title
insurance" means:
(A) Issuing as insurer or offering to issue as insurer
title insurance; and
(B) Transacting or proposing to transact one or more
of the following activities when conducted or performed in
contemplation of or in conjunction with the issuance of
title insurance;
(i) soliciting or negotiating the issuance of
title insurance;
(ii) guaranteeing, warranting, or otherwise
insuring the correctness of title searches for all
instruments affecting titles to real property, any

HB4555 - 2 - LRB103 37017 RPS 67132 b
interest in real property, cooperative units and
proprietary leases, and for all liens or charges
affecting the same;
(iii) handling of escrows, settlements, or
closings;
(iv) executing title insurance policies;
(v) effecting contracts of reinsurance;
(vi) abstracting, searching, or examining titles;
or
(vii) issuing insured closing letters or closing
protection letters;
(C) Guaranteeing, warranting, or insuring searches or
examinations of title to real property or any interest in
real property, with the exception of preparing an
attorney's opinion of title; or
(D) Guaranteeing or warranting the status of title as
to ownership of or liens on real property and personal
property by any person other than the principals to the
transaction; or
(E) Doing or proposing to do any business
substantially equivalent to any of the activities listed
in this subsection, provided that the preparation of an
attorney's opinion of title pursuant to paragraph (1)(C)
is not intended to be within the definition of "title
insurance business" or "business of title insurance".
(1.5) "Title insurance" means insuring, guaranteeing,

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warranting, or indemnifying owners of real or personal
property or the holders of liens or encumbrances thereon or
others interested therein against loss or damage suffered by
reason of liens, encumbrances upon, defects in, or the
unmarketability of the title to the property; the invalidity
or unenforceability of any liens or encumbrances thereon; or
doing any business in substance equivalent to any of the
foregoing. "Warranting" for purpose of this provision shall
not include any warranty contained in instruments of
encumbrance or conveyance. Title insurance is a single line
form of insurance, also known as monoline. An attorney's
opinion of title pursuant to paragraph (1)(C) is not intended
to be within the definition of "title insurance".
(2) "Title insurance company" means any domestic company
organized under the laws of this State for the purpose of
conducting the business of title insurance and any title
insurance company organized under the laws of another State,
the District of Columbia or foreign government and authorized
to transact the business of title insurance in this State.
(3) "Title insurance agent" means a person, firm,
partnership, association, corporation, or other legal entity
that is the holder of a certificate of authority provided
pursuant to Section 16 and that is authorized registered by a
title insurance company to solicit title insurance, collect
title insurance premiums and endorsement charges, perform core
title services, and, if authorized by a title insurance

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company, and authorized by such company to determine
insurability of title in accordance with generally acceptable
underwriting rules and standards in reliance on either the
public records or a search package prepared from a title
plant, or both, and authorized by such title insurance company
in addition to do any of the following: act as an escrow agent
pursuant to Sections subsections (f), (g), and (h) of Section
16, 16.1, and 16.2 of this Act. "Title , solicit title
insurance, collect premiums, or issue title insurance
commitments, policies, and endorsements of the title insurance
company; provided, however, the term "title insurance agent"
does shall not include officers and salaried employees of any
title insurance company.
(4) "Producer of title business" is any person, firm,
partnership, association, corporation or other legal entity
engaged in this State in the trade, business, occupation or
profession of (i) buying or selling interests in real
property, (ii) making loans secured by interests in real
property, or (iii) acting as broker, agent, attorney, or
representative of natural persons or other legal entities that
buy or sell interests in real property or that lend money with
such interests as security.
(5) "Associate" is any firm, association, partnership,
corporation or other legal entity organized for profit in
which a producer of title business is a director, officer, or
partner thereof, or owner of a financial interest, as defined

HB4555 - 5 - LRB103 37017 RPS 67132 b
herein, in such entity; any legal entity that controls, is
controlled by, or is under common control with a producer of
title business; and any natural person or legal entity with
whom a producer of title business has any agreement,
arrangement, or understanding or pursues any course of conduct
the purpose of which is to evade the provisions of this Act.
(6) "Financial interest" is any ownership interest, legal
or beneficial, except ownership of publicly traded stock.
(7) "Refer" means to place or cause to be placed, or to
exercise any power or influence over the placing of title
business, whether or not the consent or approval of any other
person is sought or obtained with respect to the referral.
(8) "Escrow Agent" means any title insurance company or
any title insurance agent, including independent contractors
of either, acting on behalf of a title insurance company,
which receives deposits, in trust, of funds or documents, or
both, for the purpose of effecting the sale, transfer,
encumbrance or lease of real property to be held by such escrow
agent until title to the real property that is the subject of
the escrow is in a prescribed condition. An escrow agent
conducting closings shall be subject to the provisions of
Sections paragraphs (1) through (4) of subsection (e) of
Section 16, 16.1, and 16.2 of this Act.
(9) "Independent Escrowee" means any firm, person,
partnership, association, corporation or other legal entity,
other than a title insurance company or a title insurance

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agent, which receives deposits, in trust, of funds or
documents, or both, for the purpose of effecting the sale,
transfer, encumbrance or lease of real property to be held by
such escrowee until title to the real property that is the
subject of the escrow is in a prescribed condition. Federal
and State chartered banks, savings and loan associations,
credit unions, mortgage bankers, banks or trust companies
authorized to do business under the Illinois Corporate
Fiduciary Act, licensees under the Consumer Installment Loan
Act, real estate brokers licensed pursuant to the Real Estate
License Act of 2000, as such Acts are now or hereafter amended,
and licensed attorneys when engaged in the attorney-client
relationship are exempt from the escrow provisions of this
Act. "Independent Escrowee" does not include employees or
independent contractors of a title insurance company or title
insurance agent authorized by a title insurance company to
perform closing, escrow, or settlement services.
(10) "Single risk" means the insured amount of any title
insurance policy, except that where 2 or more title insurance
policies are issued simultaneously covering different estates
in the same real property, "single risk" means the sum of the
insured amounts of all such title insurance policies. Any
title insurance policy insuring a mortgage interest, a claim
payment under which reduces the insured amount of a fee or
leasehold title insurance policy, shall be excluded in
computing the amount of a single risk to the extent that the

HB4555 - 7 - LRB103 37017 RPS 67132 b
insured amount of the mortgage title insurance policy does not
exceed the insured amount of the fee or leasehold title
insurance policy.
(11) "Department" means the Department of Financial and
Professional Regulation.
(12) "Secretary" means the Secretary of Financial and
Professional Regulation.
(13) "Insured closing letter" or "closing protection
letter" means an indemnification or undertaking to a party to
a real property transaction, from a principal such as a title
insurance company, setting forth in writing the extent of the
principal's responsibility for intentional misconduct or
errors in closing the real property transaction on the part of
a settlement agent, such as a title insurance agent or other
settlement service provider, or an indemnification or
undertaking given by a title insurance company or an
independent escrowee setting forth in writing the extent of
the title insurance company's or independent escrowee's
responsibility to a party to a real property transaction which
indemnifies the party against the intentional misconduct or
errors in closing the real property transaction on the part of
the title insurance company or independent escrowee and
includes protection afforded pursuant to subsections (p), (q),
and (r) (f), (g), and (h) of Section 16, Section 16.1,
subsection (h) of Section 17, and Section 17.1 of this Act even
if such protection is afforded by contract.

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(14) "Residential real property" means a building or
buildings consisting of one to 4 residential units or a
residential condominium unit where at least one of the
residential units or condominium units is occupied or intended
to be occupied as a residence by the purchaser or borrower, or
in the event that the purchaser or borrower is the trustee of a
trust, by a beneficiary of that trust.
(15) "Financial institution" means any bank subject to the
Illinois Banking Act, any savings and loan association subject
to the Illinois Savings and Loan Act of 1985, any savings bank
subject to the Savings Bank Act, any credit union subject to
the Illinois Credit Union Act, and any federally chartered
commercial bank, savings and loan association, savings bank,
or credit union organized and operated in this State pursuant
to the laws of the United States.
(16) "Core title services" means the performance of the
following services, for which liability shall arise, and that
is separate from and is not duplicative of any other
professional service, including, without limitation, the
practice of law and the performance of services as a real
estate licensee:
(A) review and evaluation of title, tax, judgment,
lien, and other searches or search products, private title
plant records, records of grantor-grantee and other
indices, public records and other records, and any other
information and materials which are relevant to a

HB4555 - 9 - LRB103 37017 RPS 67132 b
particular property and transaction to determine
insurability of title to the property;
(B) issuing or causing to be issued the title
commitments on behalf of a title insurance company,
including the determination of the conditions under which
the title insurance company will issue the title insurance
policies required in a particular transaction;
(C) determination as to whether, in accordance with
applicable law and the title insurance company's
underwriting requirements, principles, or guidelines,
underwriting objections stated on the title insurance
commitments may be cleared and the circumstances under
which the objections will be waived or insured before
issuance of the title insurance policies; and
(D) issuing or causing to be issued the title
insurance policies required in a particular transaction
when all conditions for the issuance have been satisfied.
(17) "Title search" means any abstract of title, tract,
tax, judgment, or lien searches, limited purpose searches,
other searches and search products, private title plant
records, records of grantor-grantee and other indices, public
records and other records, property inspections, records
related to the status of title to land, and other information
and materials that are relevant to a particular residential
real property and transactions relating to that residential
real property.

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(Source: P.A. 100-485, eff. 9-8-17.)
(215 ILCS 155/12) (from Ch. 73, par. 1412)
Sec. 12. Examinations; compliance.
(a) The Secretary or the Secretary's his authorized
representative shall have the power and authority, and it
shall be his duty, to cause to be visited and examined annually
any title insurance company doing business under this Act, and
to verify and compel compliance with the provisions of law
governing it.
(b) The Secretary or the Secretary's his authorized
representative agent shall have power and authority to visit
and examine the records specifically pertaining to the
services provided under this Act of any title insurance agent,
but not including files pertaining to the title insurance
agent's practice of law, if applicable, and to verify and
compel compliance with the provisions of this Act compel
compliance with the provisions of this Act and shall, only
upon the showing of good cause, require any title insurance
company to take all legal means to obtain the appropriate
records of its registered agents and make them available for
examination at a time and place designated by the Secretary.
Expenses incurred in the course of such examinations will be
the responsibility of the title insurance company. In the
event that a present or former registered agent or its
successor refuses or is unable to cooperate with a title

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insurance company in furnishing the records requested by the
Secretary or his or her authorized agent, then the Secretary
or his or her authorized agent shall have the power and
authority to obtain those records directly from the registered
agent.
(c) The Secretary or the Secretary's authorized
representative shall have the power and authority to visit and
examine the records specifically pertaining to the services
provided under this Act of any independent escrowee and to
verify and compel compliance with the provisions of this Act.
(Source: P.A. 94-893, eff. 6-20-06.)
(215 ILCS 155/15.2 new)
Sec. 15.2. Title insurance company duties.
(a) This Section applies only to transactions involving
residential real property.
(b) In the conduct of its title insurance business, every
title insurance company shall:
(1) Post and publish its current rates and charges
associated with its title insurance business with a clear
and complete description thereof, including, without
limitation, title insurance premiums, endorsements to
policies, fees for services as an escrow agent, and all
other services and products it provides, conspicuously in
its offices and on its websites, social media, and
digital, electronic, online, and other platforms and

HB4555 - 12 - LRB103 37017 RPS 67132 b
places that are intended to be visited or viewed by the
public. Title insurance companies must also provide their
registered title insurance agents with the posted and
published rates and charges. A title insurance company
must not make a charge that exceeds its published rates
and charges. This subsection (b) does not apply to special
risk title insurance and endorsement premiums, general
advertising, and marketing in media not controlled by the
title insurance company, but any such advertising shall
contain information, such as an Internet web address or a
hyperlink, to a website where the published rates and
charges can be viewed by the public.
(2) Require all of its title insurance agents to
perform, at a minimum in each transaction, all core title
services as a condition to that title insurance agent's
compensation as set forth in the agency contract, and may
not interfere with, assume in whole or in part, or prevent
the title insurance agent's performance of any core title
service.
(3) Agree upon the terms of the agency in writing with
its title insurance agents; the terms shall include that
the title insurance agent must perform, at a minimum, all
core title services as a condition of the title insurance
agent's compensation for each title insurance product and
endorsement issued and the compensation that the title
insurance agent shall receive for the performance of such

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core title services. Compensation to the title insurance
agent for the performance of core title services shall be
as stated in the written agency contract.
(4) Share title insurance premiums and endorsement
charges only with its title insurance agent performing the
core title services in a transaction.
(5) Agree in writing with any title insurance agent to
which the title insurance company provides products or
services that are not core title services but are related
to the title insurance agent's performance of core title
services and are included in the cost of the title
insurance premiums and endorsements, such as, if
applicable, title searches, underwriting research
assistance, quality control, document recording, retention
of title documentation, commitment and policy typing, or
other products and services to the title insurance agent.
The written agreement must set forth, at a minimum, a
description of the products and services to be provided
and the compensation to be paid for such products and
services. Such compensation must be commensurate with the
actual value of the products and services.
(6) Retain any remedy or right of action against its
title insurance agent as provided in any law, rule, or
regulation for the title insurance agent's failure to
perform its obligations under the written agency contract,
underwriting requirements, or otherwise as provided by

HB4555 - 14 - LRB103 37017 RPS 67132 b
law.
(c) In any residential real property transaction in which
a title insurance company acts as an escrow agent pursuant to
any provision in this Act:
(1) A title insurance company's current rates and
charges for its products and services rendered as an
escrow agent must be included in the posting and
publication provided for in subsection (b).
(2) A title insurance company shall disburse all title
insurance premiums and endorsement charges as directed by
the title insurance agent performing core title services
under Section 16.2 at the time of settlement or closing.
The disbursements shall be in accordance with the written
agency or other contracts between the title insurance
agent and the title insurance company acting as the escrow
agent in the transaction and the distributions shall be
clearly and unambiguously disclosed on any applicable
closing disclosure or settlement statement and delivered
to the parties to the transaction at the time of closing or
settlement.
(3) A title insurance company shall not share or allow
to be shared, either directly or indirectly, any of its
compensation for its service as an escrow agent or other
products or services with any title insurance agent except
as provided in this Section. Any payment that is contrary
to this paragraph (3) is a prohibited inducement or

HB4555 - 15 - LRB103 37017 RPS 67132 b
compensation for a referral in violation of Section 24.
(d) Nothing in this Section shall be construed to restrict
or impair a title insurance company's right or ability to
determine and promulgate its underwriting requirements,
principles, and conditions for insuring any risk that would be
covered in a policy of insurance or an endorsement to a policy,
or to educate, instruct, or inform its title insurance agents
as to its underwriting requirements generally or in a
particular transaction or otherwise. Nothing in this Section
shall be construed to restrict or impair a title insurance
company's right or ability to determine and charge special
risk title insurance and endorsement premiums that are
different from the posted or published rates and premiums, or
to waive or vary from its title insurance underwriting
requirements, principles, and conditions for insuring any risk
that would be covered in a policy of insurance or an
endorsement to a policy in any given case as it, in its sole
discretion, may decide. Special risk title insurance and
endorsement premiums shall not be shared with any other party.
(215 ILCS 155/16) (from Ch. 73, par. 1416)
Sec. 16. Title insurance agents.
(a) No person, firm, partnership, association,
corporation, or other legal entity shall act as or hold itself
out to be a title insurance agent without first procuring a
certificate of authority from the Secretary. A certificate of

HB4555 - 16 - LRB103 37017 RPS 67132 b
authority shall remain in effect unless revoked or suspended
by the Secretary, voluntarily surrendered by the holder, or
the holder of the certificate of authority is no longer
authorized as a title insurance agent of a title insurance
company unless duly registered by a title insurance company
with the Secretary.
(b) Each application for a certificate of authority
registration shall be made on a form specified by the
Secretary and prepared by each title insurance company which
the agent represents. The title insurance company shall retain
the copy of the application and forward a copy to the
Secretary.
(c) Every applicant for a certificate of authority
registration, except a firm, partnership, association, limited
liability company, or corporation, must be 18 years or more of
age. Included in every application for a certificate of
authority registration of a title insurance agent, including a
firm, partnership, association, limited liability company, or
corporation, shall be an affidavit of the applicant title
insurance agent, signed and notarized in front of a notary
public, 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 or
otherwise accurately disclosing any such felony or misdemeanor
involving a crime of theft or dishonesty, and that the

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applicant and every owner, officer, director, principal,
member, or manager of the applicant has never been adjudicated
by any tribunal to be civilly liable to any party based on a
finding involving theft or dishonesty. No person who has had a
conviction or pled guilty to any felony or misdemeanor or who
has been adjudicated by any tribunal to be civilly liable to
any party based on a finding involving theft or dishonesty may
qualify for a certificate of authority be registered by a
title insurance company without a written notification to the
Secretary disclosing the conviction or plea, and no such
person may serve as an owner, officer, director, principal, or
manager of any registered title insurance agent without the
written permission of the Secretary.
(d) Every individual applicant that is not duly registered
as a title insurance agent on the effective date of this
amendatory Act of the 103rd General Assembly shall:
Registration shall be made annually by a filing with the
Secretary; supplemental registrations for new title insurance
agents to be added between annual filings shall be made from
time to time in the manner provided by the Secretary;
registrations shall remain in effect unless revoked or
suspended by the Secretary or voluntarily withdrawn by the
registrant or the title insurance company.
(1) Successfully complete a 4-year course of study in
a high school or secondary school approved by the state in
which the school is located, or possess a State of

HB4555 - 18 - LRB103 37017 RPS 67132 b
Illinois High School Diploma, which shall be verified
under oath by the applicant.
(2) Pass an examination that is designed to determine
the competency of the applicant to conduct the business of
a title agent and knowledge of basic real property law and
title insurance procedures. The applicant shall file with
its application satisfactory proof that the applicant has
passed the competency examination. The Department shall
have the authority to adopt administrative rules to
approve testing providers, establish the testing
procedures, including, but not limited to, the
requirements for passing the examination, and the content
of the examination that shall, at a minimum, determine the
competency of an applicant in the following subject
matters and any other subject matter which the Secretary
may determine to be basic and essential to the competent
conduct of the business of a title insurance agent, which
must include, at a minimum:
(i) the Title Insurance Act and its requirements;
(ii) Illinois real property law, including, but
not limited to, forms of ownership, conveyancing,
testate or intestate succession of title, taxes,
judgments, liens, surveys;
(iii) basic knowledge of the federal Real Estate
Settlement Procedures Act;
(iv) core title services; and

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(v) title examinations and methods, title
objections, policy and endorsement forms, waivers of
policy exceptions, and escrow procedures.
Any applicant that is a firm, partnership, association,
corporation, or other legal entity shall fulfill the
examination requirement of paragraph (2) of this subsection
(d) by an officer of the entity that owns an equity interest in
the entity and that has managerial authority in the entity.
(e) The requirements of subsection (d) do not apply to
applicants who are admitted to practice law by the Supreme
Court of Illinois and who are in active standing or to
applicants that have earned the Illinois Land Title
Association's "Illinois Title Professional" designation.
(f) The Secretary shall issue a certificate of authority
to conduct business as a title insurance agent upon
determination that an applicant has passed the required
examination and is otherwise in compliance with this Act and
all applicable laws. The certificate of authority provided for
in this Section shall be renewed every 2 years upon the payment
of a certificate of authority renewal fee in an amount
determined by the Secretary pursuant to the rulemaking
authority under subsection (s).
(g) Any title insurance agent who is registered on the
effective date of this amendatory Act of the 103rd General
Assembly may continue to conduct the business of title
insurance as a title insurance agent for a period of one year

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after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 103rd
General Assembly and shall be issued a certificate of
authority upon the filing by a title insurance company with
the Secretary a written agency agreement that complies with
this Act within 90 days after the effective date of this
amendatory Act of the 103rd General Assembly.
(h) A title insurance company shall annually file with the
Secretary a list of all title insurance agents authorized to
conduct the business of title insurance as an agent of the
title insurance company. Supplemental filings for new title
insurance agents to be added between annual filings shall be
made from time to time in the manner provided by the Secretary.
A title insurance company shall immediately notify the
Secretary of any title insurance agent whose agency has been
terminated, and shall immediately file with the Secretary any
new title insurance agency agreement that replaces an
agreement already on file or that has been revised or amended
in any way.
(i) The Secretary shall maintain a database of title
insurance agents in good standing on a publicly accessible
website that any person may use to verify the authority of a
particular title insurance agent.
(j) (e) Funds deposited in connection with any escrows,
settlements, or closings shall be deposited into in a separate
fiduciary trust account or accounts in a bank or other
financial institution insured by an agency of the federal

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government unless the instructions provide otherwise. The
funds shall be the property of the person or persons entitled
thereto under the provisions of the escrow, settlement, or
closing and shall be segregated by escrow, settlement, or
closing in the records of the escrow agent. The funds shall not
be subject to any debts of the escrowee and shall be used only
in accordance with the terms of the individual escrow,
settlement, or closing under which the funds were accepted.
Interest received on funds deposited with the escrow agent
in connection with any escrow, settlement, or closing shall be
paid to the depositing party unless the instructions provide
otherwise.
The escrow agent shall maintain separate records of all
receipts and disbursements of escrow, settlement, or closing
funds.
The escrow agent shall comply with any rules adopted by
the Secretary pertaining to escrow, settlement, or closing
transactions.
(k) A title insurance agent shall not act as an escrow
agent in a residential real property transaction unless the
title insurance agent files with the Secretary and the
Secretary approves cash or bonds of the United States, this
State, or any body politic of this State in the amounts
specified in subsection (l). The deposit is not to be
otherwise pledged or subject to distribution among creditors,
owners of equity, or stockholders until all claims of escrow

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depositors have been paid in full or discharged, reinsured, or
otherwise assumed by a title insurance company authorized to
do business under this Act. The cash, bonds, and securities so
deposited may be exchanged for other such securities. No such
cash, bond, or security shall be sold or transferred by the
Secretary except on order of the circuit court or as provided
in subsection (o). The company shall be permitted to receive
from the Secretary the interest on the deposit as long as the
company depositing such securities remains solvent.
(l) The deposit required under subsection (k) must have a
then-current value of $500,000. For title insurance agents
that act as an escrow agent exclusively for transactions
involving residential real property in counties having
populations of fewer than 500,000, the deposit required under
subsection (k) must have a then-current value of $250,000. All
deposits shall be held for the benefit of any named party to a
written escrow it accepted. The deposit is not to be otherwise
pledged or subject to distribution among creditors or
stockholders.
(m) The Secretary may provide for custody of the deposits
by any trust company or bank located in this State and
qualified to do business under the Corporate Fiduciary Act.
The compensation, if any, of such custodian shall be paid by
the depositing company. When the required deposits have been
made by a title insurance agent that intends to act as an
escrow agent in any residential real property transaction, the

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Secretary shall certify that the title insurance agent has
complied with the provisions of this Section and is authorized
to transact the business of a title insurance agent acting as
an escrow agent in residential real property transactions.
(n) Before doing business in the State of Illinois in a
residential real property transaction, an escrow agent must
file with and have approved by the Secretary proof of a
fidelity bond in the minimum amount of $1,000,000 per
occurrence, errors and omissions insurance in the minimum
amount of $1,000,000 per occurrence, and cybercrime insurance
coverage in the minimum amount of $500,000 per occurrence. The
insurance policies required shall be issued by insurers that
are authorized to conduct such insurance business in the State
of Illinois. The title insurance agent may not conduct title
insurance business as an escrow agent unless the deposit,
fidelity bond, errors and omissions insurance, and cybercrime
insurance coverage required by this Section are continuously
maintained.
(o) The Secretary may revoke the certificate of authority
of a title insurance agent acting as an escrow agent that fails
to maintain the deposit, fidelity bond, errors and omissions
insurance, or cybercrime insurance coverage required by this
Section. The Secretary shall give notice of that revocation to
such title insurance agent as provided by this Act, and,
during the time of the revocation, the title insurance agent
may not conduct any title insurance business as an escrow

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agent. A revocation shall not be set aside until the title
insurance agent has filed with and has been approved by the
Secretary in accordance with the requirements of this Section
and the title insurance agent is otherwise in compliance with
this Act, or until the title insurance agent ceases to do
business as an escrow agent.
(p) (f) A title insurance agent shall not act as an escrow
agent in a nonresidential real property transaction where the
amount of settlement funds on deposit with the escrow agent is
less than $2,000,000 or in a residential real property
transaction unless the title insurance agent, title insurance
company, or another authorized title insurance agent has
committed for the issuance of title insurance in that
transaction and the title insurance agent is authorized to act
as an escrow agent on behalf of the title insurance company for
which the commitment for title insurance has been issued. The
authorization under the preceding sentence shall be given
either (1) by an agency contract with the title insurance
company which contract, in compliance with the requirements
set forth in subsection (q) (g) of this Section, authorizes
the title insurance agent to act as an escrow agent on behalf
of the title insurance company or (2) by a closing protection
letter in compliance with the requirements set forth in
Section 16.1 of this Act, issued by the title insurance
company to the seller, buyer, borrower, and lender. A closing
protection letter shall not be issued by a title insurance

HB4555 - 25 - LRB103 37017 RPS 67132 b
agent. The provisions of this subsection (f) shall not apply
to the authority of a title insurance agent to act as an escrow
agent under subsection (g) of Section 17 of this Act.
(q) (g) If an agency contract between the title insurance
company and the title insurance agent is the source of the
authority under subsection (p) (f) of this Section for a title
insurance agent to act as escrow agent for a real property
transaction, then the agency contract shall provide for no
less protection from the title insurance company to all
parties to the real property transaction than the title
insurance company would have provided to those parties had the
title insurance company issued a closing protection letter in
conformity with Section 16.1 of this Act.
(r) (h) A title insurance company shall be liable for the
acts or omissions of its title insurance agent as an escrow
agent if the title insurance company has authorized the title
insurance agent under subsections (p) and (q) (f) and (g) of
this Section 16 and only to the extent of the liability
undertaken by the title insurance company in the agency
agreement or closing protection letter. The liability, if any,
of the title insurance agent to the title insurance company
for acts and omissions of the title insurance agent as an
escrow agent shall not be limited or otherwise modified
because the title insurance company has provided closing
protection to a party or parties to a real property
transaction escrow, settlement, or closing. The escrow agent

HB4555 - 26 - LRB103 37017 RPS 67132 b
shall not charge a fee for protection provided by a title
insurance company to parties to real property transactions
under subsections (p) and (q) (f) and (g) of this Section 16
and Section 16.1, but shall collect from the parties the fee
charged by the title insurance company and shall promptly
remit the fee to the title insurance company. The title
insurance company may charge the parties a reasonable fee for
protection provided pursuant to subsections (p) and (q) (f)
and (g) of this Section 16 and Section 16.1 and shall not pay
any portion of the fee to the escrow agent. The payment of any
portion of the fee to the escrow agent by the title insurance
company, shall be deemed a prohibited inducement or
compensation in violation of Section 24 of this Act.
(s) (i) The Secretary shall adopt and amend such rules as
may be required for the proper administration and enforcement
of this Section 16 consistent with the federal Real Estate
Settlement Procedures Act and Section 24 of this Act,
including the proper administration of the licensing and
examination of applicants, the retention of third-party
licensing and competency examination entities if the Secretary
deems such retention to be reasonable, necessary, and proper,
and application, licensing, and renewal fees sufficient to
offset the costs of the implementation, administration, and
enforcement of the provisions of this Section. The Department
shall adopt such rules as the Secretary deems necessary
promptly after the effective date of this amendatory Act of

HB4555 - 27 - LRB103 37017 RPS 67132 b
the 103rd General Assembly.
(t) Notwithstanding any other provision of this amendatory
Act of the 103rd General Assembly, the examination
requirements of paragraph (2) of subsection (d) shall take
effect on the date that final rules for implementation of
provisions described in subsection (s) take effect.
(Source: P.A. 98-398, eff. 1-1-14; 98-832, eff. 1-1-15;
99-104, eff. 1-1-16.)
(215 ILCS 155/16.2 new)
Sec. 16.2. Title insurance agent duties.
(a) This Section shall apply only to transactions
involving residential real property.
(b) In the conduct of its title insurance business, every
title insurance agent shall:
(1) Post and publish the current rates and charges of
each of its title insurance company principals, as
provided by the title insurance company, conspicuously in
its offices and on its websites, social media, and
digital, electronic, online, and other platforms and
places that are intended to be visited or viewed by the
public. A title insurance agent shall not make a charge
that exceeds the published rates and charges. This
subsection (b) does not apply to special risk title
insurance and endorsements premiums, general advertising,
and marketing in media not controlled by the title

HB4555 - 28 - LRB103 37017 RPS 67132 b
insurance agent, but any such advertising shall contain
information, such as an Internet web address or a
hyperlink, to a website where such published rates and
charges can be viewed by the public.
(2) Agree upon the terms of the agency in writing with
each title insurance company for which it is a registered
agent; the terms shall include that the title insurance
agent must perform, at a minimum, all core title services
as a condition of the title insurance agent's compensation
for each title insurance product and endorsement issued,
and the compensation that the title insurance agent shall
receive for the performance of such core title services.
Compensation received by the title insurance agent for the
performance of core title services shall not exceed that
which is stated in the written agency contract.
(3) Enter into an agreement in writing with any escrow
agent or title insurance agent that provides products or
services that are not core title services but that are
related to the title insurance agent's performance of core
title services and are included in the title insurance and
endorsements premiums, such as, if applicable, title
searches, underwriting research assistance, quality
control, document recording, retention of title
documentation, commitment and policy typing, or other
products and services to the title insurance agent; the
agreement shall set forth, at a minimum, a description of

HB4555 - 29 - LRB103 37017 RPS 67132 b
the product and services to be provided, the compensation
to be paid for such products and services, and the
conditions for which the products and services are
necessary. Such compensation shall be commensurate with
the actual value of such products and services.
(4) Perform, at a minimum, all core title services as
a condition of its compensation as set forth in the agency
agreement.
(5) Direct the escrow agent or independent escrowee as
to the disbursement at the time of settlement or closing
of title insurance premiums and endorsement charges to the
title insurance company in accordance with its agency
contract and to the escrow agent in accordance with its
written agreement. All such disbursements shall be clearly
and unambiguously disclosed on any applicable closing
disclosure and settlement statement and delivered to the
parties to the transaction at the time of closing or
settlement.
(6) Not share or allow to be shared, either directly
or indirectly, any of its compensation for any products or
services charged directly to a party in the transaction
with any other title insurance agent except as provided in
this Section. Any payment that is contrary to this
paragraph (6) is a prohibited inducement or compensation
for a referral in violation of Section 24.
(c) In any transaction in which a title insurance agent

HB4555 - 30 - LRB103 37017 RPS 67132 b
acts as an escrow agent pursuant to Sections 16, 16.1, and 16.2
of this Act or any other provision in this Act:
(1) The title insurance agent's current rates and
charges for its products and services rendered as an
escrow agent shall be included in the posting and
publication provided for in subsection (b). An escrow
agent shall not make any charge that exceeds its published
rates and charges.
(2) The escrow agent shall disburse all title
insurance premiums and endorsement charges as directed by
the title insurance agent performing core title services
at the time of settlement or closing of the transaction.
The disbursement shall include payment for any products or
services that are not core title services but that are
related to the title insurance agent's performance of core
title services and are included in the cost of the title
insurance premiums and endorsements, such as, if
applicable, title searches, underwriting research
assistance, quality control, document recording, retention
of title documentation, commitment and policy typing, or
other products and services to the title insurance agent
that were supplied to the title insurance agent by an
escrow agent or other title insurance agent. The
disbursements shall be in accordance with the written
agency or other agreement between the title insurance
agent and escrow agent or other title insurance agent in

HB4555 - 31 - LRB103 37017 RPS 67132 b
the transaction and the distributions shall be clearly and
unambiguously disclosed on any applicable closing
disclosure or settlement statement and delivered to the
parties to the transaction at the time of closing or
settlement.
(3) The escrow agent shall not share or allow to be
shared, either directly or indirectly, any of its
compensation for its service as an escrow agent or other
products or services charged directly to a party in the
transaction with any other title insurance agent except as
provided in this Section. Any payment that is contrary to
this paragraph (3) is a prohibited inducement or
compensation for a referral in violation of Section 24.
(215 ILCS 155/17.2 new)
Sec. 17.2. Independent escrowee duties.
(a) This Section shall apply only to transactions
involving residential real property.
(b) In the conduct of its escrow, settlement, or closing
business, and its operation as an escrow, settlement, or
closing agent as provided in Section 17, every independent
escrowee shall:
(1) Post and publish the current rates and charges
associated with its performance of the services and
obligations as an independent escrowee and all other
services and products it provides with a clear and

HB4555 - 32 - LRB103 37017 RPS 67132 b
complete description thereof conspicuously in its offices
and on its websites, social media, and digital,
electronic, online, and other platforms and places that
are intended to be visited or viewed by the public. An
independent escrowee shall not make a charge that exceeds
the published rates and charges. This paragraph (1) shall
not apply to general advertising and marketing in media
not controlled by the independent escrowee, but any such
advertising shall contain information, such as an Internet
web address or a hyperlink, to a website where such
published rates and charges can be viewed by the public.
(2) Disburse all title insurance premiums and
endorsement charges as directed by the title insurance
agent performing core title services under subsection (c)
of Section 16.2 at the time of settlement or closing. All
such disbursements shall be clearly and unambiguously
disclosed on any applicable closing disclosure or
settlement statement and delivered to the parties to the
transaction at the time of closing or settlement.
(c) An independent escrowee shall not share or allow to be
shared any of its compensation for its escrow and settlement
services with any title insurance company or title insurance
agent except as provided in this Section. Any payment that is
contrary to this subsection (c) is a prohibited inducement or
compensation for a referral in violation of Section 24.
Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon

HB4555 - 33 - LRB103 37017 RPS 67132 b