§1092.  Suspension and revocation of licensure; commissioner's interpretations; prohibitions

A.  After notice and an opportunity to be heard as provided in the Administrative Procedure Act, the commissioner may suspend or revoke the license of any person licensed pursuant to this Chapter who:

(1)  Violates any of the provisions of this Chapter or any rule or regulation promulgated or any order, including but not limited to a cease and desist order or subpoena, issued pursuant to this Chapter.

(2)  Violates any provision of a voluntary consent or compliance agreement which has been entered into with the commissioner.

(3)  Has knowingly provided or caused to be provided to the commissioner any false or fraudulent misrepresentation of material fact or any false or fraudulent financial statement, or has suppressed or withheld from the commissioner any information which if submitted by him would have resulted in denial of the license application.

(4)  Refuses to permit an examination by the commissioner of his books and affairs, or has refused or failed within a reasonable time to furnish any information or make any report that may be required by the commissioner under the provisions of this Chapter.

(5)  Fails to maintain records as required by the commissioner after being given written notice to the last address of record and thirty days within which to correct the failure.  The commissioner may grant, on good cause shown, up to two thirty-day extensions within which to correct the recordkeeping violations.

(6)  Continues in office any individual with power to direct the management or policies of a person regulated by this Chapter, including but not limited to any officer, director, or manager, if such individual is convicted of, pleads guilty to, or is found guilty after a plea of nolo contendere of any felony and has been adjudicated guilty in any state, federal, foreign, or military court.

(7)  Violates any provision of a regulatory or prohibitory statute and has been found to have violated such statute by the governmental agency responsible for determining such violations.

(8)  Misrepresents material facts or makes false promises likely to influence, persuade, or induce an applicant into making a residential mortgage loan or a mortgagor into taking a mortgage loan, or pursues a course of misrepresentation through agents or otherwise.

(9)  Misrepresents or conceals material facts, terms, or conditions of a transaction to which he is a party, pertinent to an applicant for a mortgage loan or a mortgagor.

(10)  Knowingly engages in any transaction, practice, or course of business which perpetrates a fraud upon any person in connection with the making, purchasing, sale, or brokering of any mortgage loan.

(11)  Fails to account for or deliver to any person any personal property obtained in connection with a residential mortgage loan, including but not limited to money, funds, deposits, checks, drafts, mortgages, or other documents or things of value, which has come into his hands and which is not his property, or which he is not entitled by law to retain.

(12)  Fails to disburse, without just cause, any funds in accordance with any agreement connected with a residential mortgage loan.

(13)  Fails to pay any fee or assessment imposed by this Chapter or by any rule or regulation promulgated in accordance with this Chapter.

(14)  Violates the written restrictions or conditions under which the license was issued.

(15)  Fails, after notice and without lawful excuse, to obey any order or subpoena issued by the commissioner.

(16)  The commissioner discovers any fact or condition currently exists which, if it had existed at the time of the original application for licensure, would have warranted the denial of the application.

(17)  Repealed by Acts 2009, No. 522, §3, eff. July 31, 2009.

B.(1)  Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, and in addition to any other authority conferred upon the commissioner by any other provision of law, the commissioner may upon discovery order an immediate suspension of the license of any person licensed pursuant to this Chapter who:

(a)  Fails to maintain a surety bond in any manner as provided for by this Chapter.

(b)  Commits serious violations of this Chapter such that, in the opinion of the commissioner, the public safety and welfare demand that emergency action be taken.

(c)  Submits a payment of any fee for any application, notification, examination, investigation, late fee, or penalty which is returned, declined, denied, or otherwise not paid in full for any reason.

(d)  Is convicted of a felony that would have prohibited the issuance or renewal of the license.

(e)  Has his license to act as a residential mortgage broker, residential mortgage lender, mortgage servicer, or residential mortgage loan originator suspended or revoked in this or another jurisdiction.

(2)  A person whose license is suspended under this Subsection shall have thirty days from the date of the order to request a hearing in accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act.  Failure to timely request a hearing shall constitute a waiver of all hearing rights regarding the suspension.

C.  In addition to any other authority conferred upon the commissioner by this Chapter or this Title, the commissioner may issue cease and desist orders, order refunds of any unauthorized portion of any fee, or charge any person collects in violation of this Chapter, and may impose a civil money penalty not exceeding one thousand dollars upon any person who is found in an administrative proceeding to have violated any of the provisions of this Chapter or any rule or regulation promulgated in accordance with this Chapter.  Each separate violation shall subject such person to such civil money penalty and each day such person acts without complying with the provisions of this Chapter, or the rules or regulations promulgated in accordance with this Chapter, shall constitute a separate violation.

D.  The violations listed in this Subsection are nonexclusive, and are in addition to and exist independent of, any other violations set forth in other provisions of this Chapter.  Failure to comply with any provisions set forth herein may serve as a basis for any enforcement or other action accorded the commissioner under this Title.  It shall be a violation of this Chapter for a person or individual engaged in residential mortgage lending activity subject to this Chapter to:

(1)  Directly or indirectly employ any scheme, device, or artifice to defraud or mislead borrowers, lenders, or any person, when such person or individual knew or should have known that such scheme, device, or artifice was defrauding or misleading.

(2)  Engage in any unfair or deceptive practice toward any person.

(3)  Obtain property by fraud or misrepresentation.

(4)  With the intent to defraud, solicit or enter into a contract with a consumer providing for payment of an unlawful fee or commission to a person subject to this Chapter even though no loan is actually obtained for the consumer.

(5)  Solicit, advertise, or enter into a contract for specific interest rates, points, or other financing terms when the person or individual knew or should have known that such terms are not actually available at the time of soliciting, advertising, or contracting.

(6)  Conduct any business covered by this Chapter without holding a valid license as required under this Chapter, or knowingly assist or aid and abet any person in the conduct of business under this Chapter without a valid license as required under this Chapter.

(7)  As determined by the commissioner, structure a residential loan transaction in such a manner as to circumvent the provisions of this Chapter.

(8)  Fail to comply with this Chapter or rules or regulations promulgated under this Chapter, or fail to comply with any other state or federal law, including the rules and regulations issued thereunder, applicable to any residential mortgage lending activity.

(9)  Make, in any manner, any false or deceptive statement or representation with regard to the rates, points, or other financing terms or conditions for a residential mortgage loan when such person or individual knew or should have known that such statement or representation was false or deceptive, or engage in bait and switch advertising.

(10)  Negligently make any false statement, or knowingly and willfully make any omission of material fact, in connection with any information or reports filed with a governmental agency or the NMLS&R, or in connection with any investigation conducted by the commissioner or any other governmental agency.

(11)  Make any payment, threat, or promise, directly or indirectly, to any person for the purposes of influencing the independent judgment of the person in connection with a residential mortgage loan, or make any payment, threat, or promise, directly or indirectly, to any appraiser of a property, for the purposes of influencing the independent judgment of the appraiser with respect to the value of the property.

(12)  Collect, charge, attempt to collect or charge, or use or propose any agreement purporting to collect or charge any fee prohibited by this Chapter.

(13)  Engage in loan processing or underwriting activities as an independent contractor without obtaining a license to act as a residential mortgage loan originator.

(14)  Fail to truthfully account for monies belonging to a party to a residential mortgage loan transaction.

(15)  Represent to the public through advertising or other means of communicating or providing information including the use of business cards, stationary brochures, signs, rate lists, or other promotional items, that such an individual can or will perform any activities of a mortgage loan originator, while such individual engages in activities solely as a loan processor or underwriter.

E.  The commissioner may report violations to other state and federal regulators of mortgage lending activities, the NMLS&R, federal law enforcement agencies, the attorney general, or to the district attorney of the appropriate parish, who may institute such proceedings as they deem appropriate.

F.  No act done or omitted in conformity with any advisory opinion or interpretation issued by the office of financial institutions at the time of the act or omission or subsequent to the act or omission  shall constitute a violation of this Chapter, notwithstanding that after such act or omission has occurred, such advisory opinion or interpretation is amended, rescinded, or determined by judicial or other authority to be invalid for any reason.  Advisory opinions and interpretations of the office of financial institutions shall not be considered rules requiring compliance with the rulemaking process of the Louisiana Administrative Procedure Act.  The commissioner and the employees of the office of financial institutions shall have no liability to any person with respect to an advisory opinion or interpretation issued in connection with this Chapter.

G.  Any person who acts as a mortgage broker, mortgage lender, mortgage servicer, or mortgage loan originator without complying with the licensing provisions of this Chapter shall be subject to forfeiture of the compensation attributable to and received by the mortgage broker, mortgage lender, mortgage servicer, or mortgage loan originator in connection with residential mortgage lending activity occurring on or after August 15, 2001; provided that the forfeiture of such compensation by the mortgage broker, mortgage lender, mortgage servicer, or mortgage loan originator shall not impair the validity of the note and mortgage.

H.  All of the grounds for license suspension or revocation listed in Subsection A of this Section are violations of this Chapter and may serve as the basis for any other enforcement action provided to the commissioner by this Title.

I.  The commissioner may share information about any person who is licensed or required to be licensed pursuant to this Chapter with any state or federal agency having concurrent jurisdiction over such person with the Office of Financial Institutions.

J.  Repealed by Acts 2007, No. 36, §2, eff. June 18, 2007 and Acts 2007, No. 376, §2, eff. July 10, 2007.

K.  Any residential mortgage lender, broker, or servicer whose license under this Chapter has been revoked for any reason may not reapply for a license until at least five years have elapsed from the date of the order of revocation, unless the commissioner, in his sole discretion, prescribes an earlier or later date.  For purposes of this Subsection, the order shall be considered to be the commissioner's notification of revocation of the license.  For the purposes of this Subsection, mortgage lender, mortgage broker, or mortgage servicer shall include the licensee, owners of ten percent or more, and its members if the licensee is a limited liability company, its partners if the licensee is a partnership, its officers and directors, if the licensee is a corporation, and any other person determined by the commissioner, in his sole discretion, to be closely related to the mortgage lender, broker, or servicer.

Acts 1999, No. 1098, §1, eff. July 9, 1999; Acts 2000, 1st Ex. Sess., No. 34, §1, eff. April 14, 2000; Acts 2001, No. 617, §1, eff. June 22, 2001; Acts 2003, No. 875, §§1 and 2; Acts 2006, No. 237, §1; Acts 2007, No. 36, §2, eff. June 18, 2007; Acts 2007, No. 376, §2, eff. July 10, 2007; Acts 2009, No. 522, §1, eff. July 31, 2009; Acts 2014, No. 260, §1, eff. June 30, 2014.