LV title firms accused of operating a monopoly

Grace Leong

Wednesday, Dec. 19, 2001 | 10:48 a.m.

Commerce Land Title Inc., a Carson City-based title insurance company, is accusing a consortium of Las Vegas title companies of using anti-competitive measures to block access to a property transaction database.

Commerce Land sued Clark County Title Service (CCTS), which consists of 11 national and local title insurance and title companies, in U.S. District Court on Monday.

The suit alleges CCTS violated federal antitrust law by blocking access to the database unless rivals paid prohibitive usage fees.

The shareholders of CCTS include Nevada Title Co., First American Title Co. of Nevada, ATI Title of Nevada, Fidelity National Title Agency of Nevada Inc., Land Title of Nevada Inc., Lawyers Title of Nevada Inc., Old Republic Title Co. of Nevada, Stewart Title of Nevada, National Title Co. Inc., Del Webb Title Co. of Nevada Inc. and United Title of Nevada Inc., the lawsuit said.

Commerce Land said it can't issue or sell title insurance policies without getting access to the database, which it said contains more than 10 million documents concerning real estate transactions in Clark County that have been filed since the early 1900s.

"Without access to the (database), a title company cannot ... conduct business as a title company," the suit said.

Commerce, which said it would be "cost-prohibitive and competitively impossible for any single title company" to duplicate the database, said CCTS and its shareholders were able to block new title insurance entrants by "controlling which title company may access the database, deciding who may become a shareholder and at what price."

The defendant declined comment on the allegations.

Jim Jeppson, the Nevada Insurance Department's chief insurance assistant, said he isn't aware of any complaints brought against CCTS.

"No insurer or agent may engage in anticompetitive practices. All we've received so far are inquiries from prospective title agents or insurers planning to start up in Clark County, wanting to know if CCTS is legitimate," he said.

"To use the database, you must be a member and buy membership rights. I've heard from some of CCTS's members that membership is available to anyone as long as they are willing to pay the fee," he said.

Jeppson said he couldn't specify the size of the fee.

"But I've heard some companies have paid a one-time fee of up to $1 million for the use of the database. If you're not a member, you can still run searches from the official records section of the County Clerk's office."

"But the advantage of using CCTS's database is that CCTS takes those official records and other records they've purchased and organizes them in such a way that title agents can do a much more efficient search of titles," he said.

Jeppson said Commerce is a newly licensed title agent in Clark County, but wasn't sure if it is in operation yet.