This case reverses a judgment against Fidelity on the ground that it was barred by Ins. Code 12414.26, part of the Ins. Code provisions dealing with title insurance. The section provides: “No act done, action taken, or agreement made pursuant to the authority conferred by Article 5.5 [dealing with rate filing and regulation] . . . of this chapter shall constitute a violation of or grounds for . . . civil proceedings . . . .” Plaintiffs alleged that in connection with its escrow closings Fidelity charged document preparation fees and delivery service fees. The claims related to rate making since plaintiffs asserted that Fidelity should have, but hadn’t, applied for a separate rate for delivery services and that its filed rate for document preparation didn’t apply to the preparation of deeds in connection with sales transactions.
California Court of Appeal, Sixth District (Elia, J.); September 7, 2018; 26 Cal. App. 5th 1092