Michelle A. Mierzwa, Esq. UTA Legislative Committee Chair
UTA’s Legislative Committee, led by Chair Michelle Mierzwa, has produced its 2021 Legislative ‘Wish List’ for California and Washington.
Although it is unclear if we’ll be able to push through a bill this session in California, the committee hopes to address the following issues:
– Revisions to last year’s Senate Bill 1079 include addressing the short time frame for recording the Trustee’s Deed following the post-sale process as well as various ambiguities in the timing and content of post-auction documentation from eligible bidders. (Revise 2924h and 2924m of Civil Code)
– Changing the mailing requirement in the trustee withdrawal statute from the DOT beneficiary to the current beneficiary.
– Moving the notice of rescission of Trustees Deed from Civil Code 1058.5 to a Civil Code 2924 section so it’s included in acts of a Trustee that are privileged.
– Adjusting Civil Code sections 2924c and 2943 to expressly allow estimated recording fees for Notice of Rescission of the NOD and reconveyance of the DOT to be included in the reinstatement or payoff quote.
In Washington State, the committee’s wish list is to address two issues:
1) Restructure the surplus funds disbursement under RCW 61.24.080(3).
Under the current structure of funds disbursement after a trustees’ sale, the funds must be deposited with the court, and then positioning for the disbursement of funds occurs. Often a beneficiary is in the senior position to be paid and then subordinate parties paid with the remainder. However, it is not required under current laws for a subordinate lienholder to identify as such when filing with the court. Thus a senior lienholder may have to fight back motions by subordinate parties or risk losing the loss of the funds if the junior’s order is entered.
Under the proposed legislation, surplus funds disbursement would be restructured and would allow for amounts below a certain threshold to be released by trustees instead of requiring these funds to be filed with the courts.
2) Providing better structure for the WA FFA mediation program.
While not specifically a trustee issue, firms that work within UTA continue to experience issues with mediations and mediators determining findings of not being in good faith even as there is resolution in mediation. Recommendations include developing a portal system for documents, modernizing the list of documents required from financial institutions, and better structuring of the mediation process.