As used in the Escrow Company Act:
A. "director" means the director of the division;
B. "division" means the financial institutions division of the regulation and licensing department;
C. "escrow" means any transaction in which one person, for the purpose of effecting the sale, transfer, encumbrance or lease of real or personal property to another person or for the purpose of making payments under any encumbrance of the property, delivers any written instrument, money, evidence of title to real or personal property or other thing of value to a third person to be held by that third person until the happening of a specified event or the performance of a prescribed condition, when the instrument, money, evidence of title or thing of value is to be delivered by the third person to a grantee, grantor, promisee, promisor, obligee, obligor, bailee or bailor or to any of that person's agents or employees, pursuant to the written escrow instructions;
D. "escrow company" means any person engaged in the business of receiving escrows for deposit or delivery for compensation who is required to be licensed under the Escrow Company Act;
E. "licensee" means a person holding a valid license as an escrow agent; and
F. "person" means an individual, cooperative, association, company, firm, partnership, corporation or other legal entity.
History: Laws 1983, ch. 135, § 3; 2015, ch. 135, § 2.
The 2015 amendment, effective July 1, 2015, amended the definition of division to mean the financial institutions division of the regulation and licensing department; in Subsection B, after "division of the", deleted "commerce and industry" and added "regulation and licensing"; and in Subsection C, after "encumbrance of", deleted "such" and added "the", and after "bailor or to any of", deleted "his" and added "that person's".
Temporary provisions. — Laws 2015, ch. 135, § 9 provided that an escrow company licensed pursuant to the Escrow Company Act that, prior to the effective date of Laws 2015, ch. 135, §§ 1 to 8 (July 1, 2015), was not required to file a surety or other bond with the director of the financial institutions division of the regulation and licensing department shall have until January 1, 2016 to comply with the provisions of Section 58-22-10 NMSA 1978.
Structure New Mexico Statutes
Chapter 58 - Financial Institutions and Regulations
Section 58-22-1 - Short title.
Section 58-22-3 - Definitions.
Section 58-22-4 - Exempt persons and transactions.
Section 58-22-5 - Exemption or exception; burden of proof.
Section 58-22-6 - Director; duties and powers.
Section 58-22-7 - License required.
Section 58-22-8 - Application for license.
Section 58-22-9 - Annual renewal of license.
Section 58-22-10 - Surety bond required.
Section 58-22-12 - Issuance of license.
Section 58-22-13 - Action on bond; limitation.
Section 58-22-14 - New bond required; effect of failure to file new bond.
Section 58-22-15 - Grounds for denying a license.
Section 58-22-16 - Transferability.
Section 58-22-17 - Keeping of records; examination.
Section 58-22-18 - Statement of account.
Section 58-22-19 - Division documents exception to Inspection of Public Records Act.
Section 58-22-20 - Bank deposit required; maintenance of trust accounts.
Section 58-22-21 - Attachment.
Section 58-22-21.1 - Suit to recover trust funds; attorney's fees authorized.
Section 58-22-23 - Additional business office locations.
Section 58-22-25 - Limit on fees for servicing loans or contracts of sale.
Section 58-22-26 - Unauthorized business practices.
Section 58-22-27 - Investigations by director; desist order; injunctions; fees.
Section 58-22-28 - Subpoenas, oaths and examinations of witness; penalty.
Section 58-22-28.1 - Violation of the Escrow Company Act; penalty.
Section 58-22-29 - Review of order of director.
Section 58-22-30 - Exemption from authority of superintendent of regulation and licensing.
Section 58-22-31 - Effect on persons currently engaged in escrow company business.