Definitions

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DEFINITIONS 

Administrative complaint – an initial written summary of allegations of license law violation(s) filed against a licensee 

Breach of trust – failure to carry out promises or obligations owed to another person whether intentional or negligent Section 6: Violations of License Law, Penalties and Procedures to Real Estate 115 

Commingling – mixing funds which belong to one party with the funds of another party; depositing a licensee’s personal or business funds into the same escrow account that holds clients’ funds 

Concealment – the failure to disclose material facts or information as required by law; an act that prevents or hinders discovery of facts that could potentially affect the decision to move forward with a contract 

Conversion – one party’s use, alteration, or destruction of another party’s property or funds for the first party’s own purposes; a licensee’s personal use of a client or customer’s funds 

Culpable negligence – actions or lack of actions that negatively or harmfully affect others; failure to consider the potential results of one’s actions 

Formal complaint – an administrative complaint which lists all of the charges against a licensee and which is filed when the Probable Cause Panel determines that probable cause exists for prosecution by the DBPR 

Formal hearing – a hearing chosen by an offender when there are disputed facts after probable cause has been determined to exist; held before an administrative law judge and allows the offender to present his or her side of the case 

Fraud – the deliberate deception for the purpose of unfair or unlawful personal gain; use of a dishonest action to deprive another person of his or her money, property, or legal right 

Good faith – a sincere belief, motive, or intention to deal honestly with others without malice or unfair advantage 

Informal hearing – a hearing chosen by an offender when there are no disputed facts after probable cause has been determined to exist; held during a regular meeting of the FREC 

Material fact – significant or essential information that may affect a property’s value and/or a person’s willingness to enter into a contract or transaction 

Misrepresentation – one party providing a false or misleading statement that can affect another party’s decision to enter into a contract or transaction 

Moral turpitude – a type of act or behavior that is considered vile or depraved and goes against accepted moral standards and/or insults general morality; for example, murder, robbery, counterfeiting, and arson 

Nolo contendere or no contest – a plea made by a defendant in a criminal case that accepts conviction without admitting guilt 

Probable cause – a reasonable basis or concrete evidence to indicate that a crime 116 Principles of Real Estate Practice in Florida 

may have been committed 

Summary suspension – an emergency suspension order issued when the public is in immediate danger from the actions of a licensee