CHAPTER 3: INDIVIDUAL POTENTIAL PROBLEM AREAS: SEVEN-YEAR ANALYSIS

3.4.1 Dual Agency

A large number of Board Attorneys express serious concerns about Dual Agency. As one Attorney stated, "Dual agency is a legal oxymoron." The Attorneys are concerned that both licensees and their clients do not understand the nature of dual agency or the agent's duties and obligations. "Agents can't explain it, consumers don't understand it, lawyers recoil from it, and the courts, by and large, haven't yet put it to the test. It looks fine on paper, but isn't working in practice." The Attorneys are also concerned that even if licensees do understand their duties, they cannot adequately represent both parties. "Very few agents are able to be completely loyal and objective on behalf of two principals. Many still don't understand it or govern themselves accordingly . . . . Dual agency is simply impossible to abide by in its purest sense and agents have a terrible time trying not to cross the line." Attorneys also link this Problem to Breach of Fiduciary Duty, again noting that licensees do not appreciate what being a fiduciary entails.