Oregon Provides Confidential Status to Mortgage Loan Documents Obtained During Licensee Examinations

On June 17, Oregon Governor John Kitzhaber signed into law H.B. 2083, which amends the Oregon Mortgage Lender Law to provide confidential status to mortgage loan documents obtained by the Director of the Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services as part of an examination. Effective immediately, any mortgage loan documents that the Director obtains during an examination of a mortgage banker, mortgage broker, or mortgage loan originator is not admissible as evidence in a private civil action or subject to (i) public inspection as a public record, (ii) subpoena, or (iii) discovery. However, the amendment permits the Director to disclose an individual’s mortgage loan documents obtained during an examination to that individual, so long as the Director authenticates the individual’s identity before disclosure.