Nebraska Statutes 76-2726. Equity purchaser or associate; unconscionable transaction or contract; review by court
(1) An equity purchaser or associate may not facilitate or engage in any transaction that is unconscionable given the terms and circumstances of the transaction.
Terms Used In Nebraska Statutes 76-2726
- Associate: means a partner, a subsidiary, an affiliate, an agent, or any other person working in association with a foreclosure consultant or an equity purchaser. See Nebraska Statutes 76-2704
- Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
- Equity purchase contract: means an agreement between an equity purchaser and a homeowner pertaining to the acquisition of title to the homeowner's personal residence. See Nebraska Statutes 76-2705
- Equity purchaser: means a person who, in the course of the person's business, vocation, or occupation, acquires title to a residence in foreclosure. See Nebraska Statutes 76-2706
- Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
- Remainder: An interest in property that takes effect in the future at a specified time or after the occurrence of some event, such as the death of a life tenant.
(2)(a) If a court, as a matter of law, finds an equity purchase contract or any clause of such contract to have been unconscionable at the time it was made, the court may refuse to enforce the equity purchase contract, enforce the remainder of the equity purchase contract without the unconscionable clause, or so limit the application of any unconscionable clause as to avoid an unconscionable result.
(b) When it is claimed or appears to the court that the contract or any clause thereof may be unconscionable, the parties shall be afforded a reasonable opportunity to present evidence as to its commercial setting, purpose, and effect to aid the court in making the determination.
(c) In order to support a finding of unconscionability, there must be evidence of some bad faith overreaching on the part of the equity purchaser or associate such as that which results from an unreasonable inequality of bargaining power or under other circumstances in which there is an absence of meaningful choice for one of the parties, together with contract terms that are, under standard industry practices, unreasonably favorable to the equity purchaser or associate.