Ohio Code 4707.20 – Written contract or agreement in duplicate required
(A) Except when conducting an auction under division (B)(5)(b) of section 4707.02 of the Revised Code, no person shall act as an auction firm or auctioneer until the person has first entered into a written contract or agreement in duplicate with the owner or consignee of any property to be sold, containing the terms and conditions upon which the licensee receives or accepts the property for sale at auction. The contracts or agreements shall, for a period of two years, be kept on file in the office of every person so licensed.
Terms Used In Ohio Code 4707.20
- Absentee bidding: means a method by which a potential purchaser authorizes a proxy to place on behalf of the potential purchaser a written or oral bid to an auctioneer or auction firm or an agent of an auctioneer or auction firm. See Ohio Code 4707.01
- Absolute auction: means an auction of real or personal property to which all of the following apply:
(1) The property is sold to the highest bidder without reserve. See Ohio Code 4707.01
- agriculture: includes farming; ranching; aquaculture; algaculture meaning the farming of algae; apiculture and related apicultural activities, production of honey, beeswax, honeycomb, and other related products; horticulture; viticulture, winemaking, and related activities; animal husbandry, including, but not limited to, the care and raising of livestock, equine, and fur-bearing animals; poultry husbandry and the production of poultry and poultry products; dairy production; the production of field crops, tobacco, fruits, vegetables, nursery stock, ornamental shrubs, ornamental trees, flowers, sod, or mushrooms; timber; pasturage; any combination of the foregoing; the processing, drying, storage, and marketing of agricultural products when those activities are conducted in conjunction with, but are secondary to, such husbandry or production; and any additions or modifications to the foregoing made by the director of agriculture by rule adopted in accordance with Chapter 119 of the Revised Code. See Ohio Code 1.61
- Auction: includes a sale of real or personal property, goods, or chattels in which there has been a solicitation or invitation by advertisement to the public for an advance in bidding using sealed bidding, provided that the bids are opened and there is a call for an advancement of the bids. See Ohio Code 4707.01
- Auction firm: means a person who provides auction services for online or live auctions. See Ohio Code 4707.01
- Auctioneer: means any person who engages, or who by advertising or otherwise holds the person out as being able to engage, in the calling for, recognition of, and the acceptance of, offers for the purchase of real or personal property, goods, or chattels at auction either directly or through the use of other licensed auctioneers. See Ohio Code 4707.01
- Consignee: means a person or auction firm that, in the regular course of business, takes personal property on consignment to be sold at an online or live auction by a licensed auctioneer. See Ohio Code 4707.01
- Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
- Multi-parcel auction: means any auction of real or personal property in which multiple parcels or lots are offered for sale in various amalgamations, including as individual parcels or lots, combinations of parcels or lots, and all parcels or lots as a whole. See Ohio Code 4707.01
- Person: means an individual, sole proprietor, corporation, limited liability company, association, or partnership. See Ohio Code 4707.01
- Personal property: All property that is not real property.
- Property: means real and personal property. See Ohio Code 1.59
- Reserve auction: means an auction in which the seller or an agent of the seller reserves the right to establish a stated minimum bid, the right to reject or accept any or all bids, or the right to withdraw the real or personal property at any time prior to the completion of the auction by the auctioneer. See Ohio Code 4707.01
- Settlement: Parties to a lawsuit resolve their difference without having a trial. Settlements often involve the payment of compensation by one party in satisfaction of the other party's claims.
- state: means the state of Ohio. See Ohio Code 1.59
(B) On all contracts or agreements between an auction firm or auctioneer and the owner or consignee, there shall appear a prominent statement indicating that the auction firm or auctioneer is licensed by the department of agriculture, and either that the licensee is bonded in favor of the state or that an aggrieved person may initiate a claim against the auction recovery fund created in section 4707.25 of the Revised Code as a result of the licensee’s actions, whichever is applicable.
(C) The auction firm or auctioneer who contracts with the owner is liable for the settlement of all money received, including the payment of all expenses incurred only by the licensee and the distribution of all funds, in connection with an auction.
(D) For purposes of this section, a contract or agreement shall specify all of the following:
(1) The owner of the property to be sold or the owner’s agent or the consignee;
(2) The date of the auction or a termination date of the contract or agreement;
(3) The location of the auction;
(4) The terms and conditions of the auction;
(5) All of the fees to be charged by the auctioneer or the auction firm, which shall include commissions, rentals, advertising, and labor;
(6) An explanation of the settlement of the auction that includes the disbursement of interest money, if applicable;
(7) A statement establishing the responsibility for bad checks, debts, and unpaid auction items;
(8) A statement indicating whether the auction is a reserve auction or an absolute auction. In addition, the statement shall include the definition of reserve auction or absolute auction from section 4707.01 of the Revised Code, as applicable.
(9) A statement of the auctioneer’s or auction firm’s policy regarding absentee bidding;
(10) A brief description of the real or personal property to be sold;
(11) If the sale is of real or personal property at absolute auction, a statement affirming that the seller of the real or personal property has a bona fide intention to transfer ownership of the property to the highest bidder.
(12) If the sale is a multi-parcel auction, a statement between the owner or owners of the real or personal property and the auctioneer or auction firm attesting that the type of auction will be a multi-parcel auction.
Last updated July 7, 2022 at 2:16 PM