9725-9737
BUSINESS AND PROFESSIONS CODE
SECTION 9725-9737
9725. Upon grounds provided in this article and the other articles of this act, the license of any cemetery licensee and the certificate of authority of any cemetery corporation may be revoked or suspended in accordance with the provisions of this article. 9725.1. Unprofessional conduct by any licensee or registrant or by any agent or employee of a licensee or registrant constitutes grounds for disciplinary action. Unprofessional conduct includes, but is not limited to, the following: (a) Violating or attempting to violate, directly or indirectly, or assisting in or abetting the violation of this chapter and any regulation adopted thereunder, or of any federal or state law or regulation governing the disposition of human remains, operation of cemeteries or crematories, the sale of cemetery property, or the sale of crematory services or commodities. (b) Negligence in performing any act related to the operation of a cemetery or crematory. 9726. The bureau may, upon its own motion, and shall, upon the verified complaint in writing of any person, investigate the actions of any person engaged in the business or acting in the capacity of a cemetery licensee, and may temporarily suspend or permanently revoke a license at any time where the licensee, within the immediately preceding three years, while a cemetery licensee in performing or attempting to perform any of the acts specified in this act, has been guilty of any of the following: (a) Making any substantial misrepresentation. (b) Making any false statement of a character likely to influence or persuade. (c) A continued and flagrant course of misrepresentation or making of false promises through cemetery agents or salespersons. (d) Acting for more than one party in a transaction without the knowledge or consent of all parties thereto. (e) Commingling the money or other property of his or her principal with his or her own. (f) The practice of claiming or demanding a fee, compensation or commission under any exclusive agreement authorizing or employing a licensee to sell, buy or exchange cemetery property for compensation or commission where such agreement does not contain a definite, specified date of final and complete termination. (g) The claiming or taking by a licensee of any secret or undisclosed amount of compensation, commission or profit or the failure of a licensee to reveal to the employer of such licensee the full amount of such licensee's compensation, commission or profit under any agreement authorizing or employing such licensee to sell, buy or exchange cemetery property for compensation or commission prior to or coincident with the signing of such agreement evidencing the meeting of the minds of the contracting parties, regardless of the form of such agreement, whether evidenced by documents in an escrow or by any other or different procedure. (h) The use by a licensee of any provision allowing the licensee an option to purchase in an agreement authorizing or employing such licensee to sell, buy, or exchange cemetery property for compensation or commission, except when such licensee prior to or coincident with election to exercise such option to purchase reveals in writing to the employer the full amount of licensee's profit and obtains the written consent of the employer approving the amount of such profit. (i) Any other conduct, whether of the same or a different character than specified in this section, which constitutes fraud or dishonest dealing. The misrepresentations and false statements mentioned in this section include also misrepresentation and false statements as to other property than that which the cemetery licensee may be selling or attempting to sell. 9727. The bureau may suspend or revoke the license of any cemetery licensee who, within the immediately preceding three years, has done any of the following: (a) Been convicted of a crime substantially related to the qualifications, functions and duties of such licensee. The record of conviction, or a certified copy thereof, shall be conclusive evidence of such conviction. (b) Knowingly authorized, directed, connived at or aided in the publication, advertisement, distribution, or circulation of any material false statement or representation concerning his or her business or any cemetery property offered for sale. (c) Willfully disregarded or violated any of the provisions of this act relating to cemetery brokerage. (d) Acted or conducted himself or herself in a manner which would have warranted the denial of his or her application for a cemetery license, or for a renewal thereof. 9727.1. The bureau may suspend or revoke the license of any cemetery licensee who procures a cemetery license, for himself or herself or any salesperson, by fraud, misrepresentation or deceit. An action to suspend or revoke a license for a violation of the provisions of this section shall be commenced within three years after the discovery by the bureau of that violation. 9727.2. A plea or verdict of guilty or a conviction following a plea of nolo contendere is deemed to be a conviction within the meaning of this article. The bureau may order the license suspended or revoked, or may decline to issue a license, when the time for appeal has elapsed, or the judgment of conviction has been affirmed on appeal or when an order granting probation is made suspending the imposition of sentence, irrespective of a subsequent order under the provisions of Section 1203.4 of the Penal Code allowing such person to withdraw his or her plea of guilty and to enter a plea of not guilty, or setting aside the verdict of guilty, or dismissing the accusation, information or indictment. 9728. When any salesperson is discharged by his or her employer for a violation of any of the provisions of this article prescribing a ground for disciplinary action, a verified written statement of the facts with reference thereto shall be filed forthwith with the bureau by the employer and, if the employer fails to notify the bureau as required by this section, the bureau may temporarily suspend or permanently revoke the cemetery license of the employer in accordance with the provisions of this act. 9729. The bureau may deny, suspend or revoke the cemetery license of a corporation as to any officer or agent acting under its cemetery license, and the cemetery license of a copartnership as to any member acting under its cemetery license, without revoking the cemetery license of the corporation or of the copartnership. 9730. The fees for cemetery licenses at all periods of the fiscal year is the same as provided in this article. All cemetery license fees are payable in advance of issuing the licenses and at the time of filing the application. All licenses shall be issued for the fiscal year and shall expire on June 30th of each fiscal year at midnight. 9731. If a person fails to apply for a license renewal, no renewal license shall be issued except upon payment of the delinquent renewal fee required under Section 9750.5. No person who fails to renew his or her license within one year of the expiration date can engage in any of the activities authorized by a license unless he or she first files the application required for an original license, pays the original license fee, and otherwise complies with all of the provisions of this act pertaining to the issuance of an original license. 9732. The definitions contained in this article are solely for the purposes of this article. 9733. An original cemetery broker's license is a cemetery license issued to a person who did not have a cemetery broker's license on June 30th of the fiscal year previous to the fiscal year for which the license is issued. 9734. A renewal cemetery broker's license is a cemetery license issued to a person who had a cemetery broker's license unrevoked and unsuspended on June 30th of the fiscal year previous to the fiscal year for which the renewal cemetery license is issued. 9735. An original cemetery salesperson's license is a cemetery license issued to a person who did not have a cemetery salesperson's or a broker's license either individually or as an officer of a corporation, or as a member of a copartnership, on June 30th of the fiscal year previous to the fiscal year for which the salesperson's license is issued. 9736. A renewal cemetery salesperson's license is a cemetery license issued to a person who had a cemetery salesperson's or a broker's license either individually or as an officer of a corporation, or as a member of a copartnership, on June 30th of the fiscal year previous to the fiscal year for which the salesperson's license is issued. 9737. The proceedings under this article shall be conducted in accordance with Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 11500) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code, and the bureau shall have all the powers granted therein.