Permanent Surrender of Licence

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Licensee
Michael Cox, Michael John Cox
Brokerage at Time of Sanctioned Activity
Current Brokerage
Permanent Surrender of Licence Date
25 February 2016

Summary

NOTICE OF PERMANENT SURRENDER OF LICENCE

Michael John Cox

Michael John Cox, currently unlicensed, requested the Real Estate Council of British Columbia to discontinue disciplinary proceedings against him as he decided to permanently surrender his real estate licence. Mr. Cox, while licensed as a representative with Bay Realty Ltd., Surrey, was facing a disciplinary hearing into his professional conduct and would have been required to appear before a hearing committee of the Real Estate Council to respond to these allegations.

The allegations against Mr. Cox in the Notice of Discipline Hearing are that he:

  1. contravened section 35(1)(c) of the Real Estate Services Act and section 3-4 of the Council Rules when he received a $10,000 commission advance based on the full amount of the commission indicated on the Listing Agreement and on the Trade Record Sheet he completed with respect to the sale of his clients' property even though he had entered into a Side Commission Agreement with the sellers wherein he agreed to charge them only $1,000.00 commission;
  2. contravened section 35(1)(c) of the Real Estate Services Act and section 3-4 of the Council Rules by adjusting the commission with the sellers without the knowledge or consent of his brokerage;
  3. contravened section 3-2 of the Council Rules by failing to provide his brokerage with a copy of the Side Commission Agreement;
  4. contravened section 3-4 of the Council Rules by failing to reimburse the sellers the full amount of the difference between the stated commission in the Listing Agreement and the $1,000.00 he agreed to charge them in the Side Commission Agreement; and
  5. contravened section 35(1)(g) of the Real Estate Services Act by making a false or misleading statement to the Council, specifically when he stated that he entered into the Commission Advance Agreement on August 8, 2013 because he expected a transaction involving another property to close prior to the completion of the sale of the sellers' property, which was untrue or misleading as there was no formal written offer on the other property until June 2014.

There has been no discipline hearing or finding of fact with respect to these allegations, and no admissions to these allegations by Mr. Cox.

The Council was satisfied that, in the circumstances of this case, permanent surrender of Mr. Cox's licence in lieu of proceeding with disciplinary action was appropriate. The permanent surrender of Mr. Cox's licence was effective as of February 25, 2016, although his licence was surrendered to the Real Estate Council on March 5, 2015.