THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, September 26, 1996 TAG: 9609260341
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B5 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY DAVID M. POOLE, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: RICHMOND LENGTH: 36 lines
Attorney General James S. Gilmore III says he needs more information before he can evaluate a State Bar proposal to ban nonlawyers from conducting real estate closings.
Specifically, Gilmore said he has seen no evidence that so-called lay settlement companies are harming consumers. Gilmore also noted there has been no discussion of regulating lay settlement companies, rather than banning them.
Evidence provided by the State Bar does ``not support the conclusion that a ban on nonlawyers is the least restrictive means of protecting the public,'' Gilmore said in an opinion released this week.
At issue is a high-stakes turf battle between lawyers and lay companies - such as real estate companies, title agencies and banks - over fees charged to buyers in real estate transactions.
Attorneys contend that buyers need a lawyer sitting beside them at the table to answer any last-minute legal questions about a transaction. But lay settlement agencies say consumers should be given the choice to forgo legal expenses, particularly in routine transactions such as home refinancings.
A State Bar subcommittee has issued an opinion stating that lay settlement companies engage in the unlawful practice of law by providing buyers with legal documents and answering their questions. The State Bar Council will vote on the opinion an Oct. 17-18 meeting in Roanoke.
If approved, the Virginia Supreme Court could decide whether to give the nonlawyer ban the rule of law. ILLUSTRATION: Photo
Attorney General James S. Gilmore III
KEYWORDS: LAY SETTLEMENT COMPANIES REAL ESTATE CLOSING by CNB