[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1283 Introduced in House (IH)]







105th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1283

 To provide a moratorium on certain class action lawsuits relating to 
           the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act of 1974.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 10, 1997

    Mr. Ehrlich (for himself, Mr. Ney, Mr. Fox of Pennsylvania, Mr. 
Lipinski, Mr. Bachus, Mr. Barr of Georgia, Mr. Metcalf, Mr. Baker, Mrs. 
   Kelly, Mr. LaTourette, Mr. Snowbarger, Mr. King, Mr. Hefley, Mr. 
   Chabot, Mr. Jones, Mr. Inglis of South Carolina, Mr. Neumann, Mr. 
   Ramstad, and Mr. Weller) introduced the following bill; which was 
  referred to the Committee on Banking and Financial Services, and in 
    addition to the Committee on the Judiciary, for a period to be 
subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration 
  of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee 
                               concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To provide a moratorium on certain class action lawsuits relating to 
           the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act of 1974.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Real Estate Settlement Procedures 
Act Class Action Relief Act of 1997''.

SEC. 2. MORATORIUM.

    Section 16 of the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act of 1974 (12 
U.S.C. 2614) is amended--
            (1) by inserting ``(a) In General.--'' after ``Sec. 16.''; 
        and
            (2) by adding at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(b) Class Action Moratorium.--During the period beginning on the 
date of the enactment of the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act 
Class Action Relief Act of 1997 and ending on December 31, 1998, in any 
State or Federal civil action or lawsuit arising under this Act in 
which it is alleged that a payment of a thing of value was made by a 
lender to another lender or to a mortgage broker--
            ``(1) no party shall serve or cause to be served, or be 
        required to respond to, any discovery concerning any class 
        certification issue;
            ``(2) no State or Federal court may enter any order--
                    ``(A) certifying any class, except an order 
                certifying any class directly in connection with the 
                settlement and compromise of any action; or
                    ``(B) imposing any sanctions on any party for 
                failing to comply with any discovery seeking 
                information concerning any class certification issue; 
                and
            ``(3) all State and Federal courts shall stay all further 
        proceedings in any such action in which an order certifying any 
        class has been entered on or after January 1, 1996, for any 
        purpose other than indirect connection with the settlement and 
        compromise of any such action.''.
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