This law section outlines the powers and activities allowed for associations operating under this division. They can exercise various powers necessary for achieving their goals, similar to other corporations, unless explicitly restricted by this division. Associations are subject to the General Corporation Law, but this division takes precedence if there are conflicts between the two.

This section also clarifies that references to the General Corporation Law relate to its status as of January 1, 1977, with considerations for any changes since then. Additionally, for specific chapters, an effective date is set to January 1, 1978.

An association can exist forever and has the right to create and change its own rules (bylaws) and use a seal in different forms to authenticate documents.

This law allows an association to act like a person in court. It means the association can start a lawsuit, be sued by others, complain formally, and defend itself in any court.

This law allows an association to manage property similarly to an individual. It can buy, sell, develop, or lease both real estate and personal property. Additionally, it can mortgage property and accept property as a gift or inheritance.

This law says that a savings association or its subsidiary in California needs the commissioner's written permission before doing any business deals with an affiliated person. These deals include buying, leasing, selling, or receiving gifts of property, as well as signing consulting or service contracts.

The commissioner will approve these deals if two conditions are met: First, the deal must be fair and beneficial to the savings association and must be backed by an impartial appraisal. Second, it requires prior approval by a majority of the board of directors or the voting members or stockholders, ensuring no one with a personal interest votes on the deal. At meetings for approval, all financial connections and relationships must be fully disclosed.

This law talks about borrowing rules for financial associations. If an association is not a member of a federal home loan bank, it can borrow money up to 25% of its assets, but needs written permission from the commissioner to do more. On the other hand, if the association is a member of a federal home loan bank, it has no borrowing limits and can secure its debts by using its assets as collateral.

This law allows an association to issue and sell capital certificates, which are nonwithdrawable investments that become part of the association's reserves and net worth. These certificates don't provide voting rights and are paid out only after all other financial obligations are met, like savings accounts and debts. They do, however, earn interest before the association earns any profit. In case of losses, the certificates are affected only after all other reserve funds are used up.

The law also states that, if an association's articles of incorporation permit, these certificates can be converted into common stock.

This law allows an association to join and become a member of two types of home loan banks: one is a federal home loan bank, and the other is a home loan bank set up by the state.

This section allows an association to join and interact with other organizations, whether they are government or private entities. The association can work with these organizations if they help the association achieve its goals, responsibilities, or services. The association can also make contributions and is allowed to fulfill any reasonable conditions required by these organizations as long as they are related to their purposes.

This law allows an association to handle payments for federal or state taxes and loan funds. It can meet necessary federal or state legal requirements, which might include using assets as collateral or paying interest at certain rates. Additionally, it can offer accounts that allow for immediate withdrawal, even if other rules in this division say otherwise.

This section states that associations have the ability to sell any loans they hold, or even just a portion of those loans, whenever they choose.

This law states that loans backed by real estate can be sold to, and are suitable investments for, entities like pension funds, credit unions, labor union funds, and public employee associations. These institutions can also buy such loans directly from associations.

However, it doesn’t change any existing legal limits on how much these entities can invest.

This law allows an association to manage and process loans and investments on behalf of other parties.

This law allows an association to act as a trustee and receive payment for managing certain trust funds related to retirement and profit-sharing plans, which get special tax benefits under federal law.

The association can also manage individual retirement accounts, again earning compensation for their role.

The investment of trust or account assets is limited to savings accounts or securities issued by the association, or other commissioner-approved investments.

These assets can be pooled together for investment purposes as long as records are kept to track each person's share.

The trustee can accept assets that aren't in cash but must turn them into cash as soon as possible.

This law allows associations, like banks or trust companies, to act as trustees or in other fiduciary roles under state law, similar to other corporations. They can advertise these services too. Additionally, when these associations act as trustees, they are not limited by the interest rate restrictions usually imposed by the California Constitution. However, they still need to follow all other applicable laws and regulations when conducting their business, even when these interest rate limits don't apply.

This law allows an association, with certain regulations in place, to own or share ownership in remote service units. These units are not classified as branches or agencies.

This law allows associations, like banks or credit unions, to use electronic systems to transfer money between savings account holders and other people or companies. This means they can move funds electronically without needing additional physical locations or branches to do so.

This law permits associations to offer and rent out safes, boxes, or other storage spaces for keeping personal items, under terms they agree upon with their clients. If they rent out safe-deposit boxes, they have legal remedies available to them, specifically as detailed starting in Section 1660 of another legal chapter. Additionally, they can deal with anything left unclaimed in these boxes according to established procedures.

This law allows a group or organization to sell money orders, travel checks, and other similar payment tools in California. They can either draw these tools from their own bank accounts or act as an agent to sell them for another organization that has permission to issue such tools through agents in the state.

This law states that an association or a service corporation can act as an agent for others, but cannot act as an insurance company or sell insurance on behalf of an insurance company.

If a savings and loan association holding company or a service corporation does act as an insurance agent, it must follow certain requirements outlined in the Insurance Code.

This law states that associations or service corporations are allowed to act as escrow agents when dealing with the sale, transfer, mortgage, or lease of real or personal property. However, if a subdivision of the association operates under a different name as an escrow agent, that name must be approved by the commissioner.

This section explains how associations can distribute dividends and other stock-related transactions. Before paying dividends in cash or property, associations must ensure they have enough earnings retained and meet statutory net worth requirements. Associations cannot distribute dividends if it would impair their financial standing. Stock splits are allowed and aren't considered dividends in this context. Permanent capital or paid-in surplus distributions need prior approval from a commissioner. If a shareholder knowingly receives an improper distribution, they're liable to pay it back to the association, and the commissioner can take action to recover the funds.

This law section outlines how associations can advertise their services. They must ensure their advertisements are truthful and don't mislead people about their services or financial condition. The commissioner can require associations to submit their ads for review before they are released to the public. If the commissioner does not object within five days, the ad can be used. However, if the commissioner finds any ad misleading, the association must stop using it immediately.

This law allows an association to create, manage, or give investment advice to an investment company, as well as sell securities of such a company, provided the company is authorized under California law. The law also requires that any association officers or employees involved in selling these securities must meet specific training and experience standards set by the Savings and Loan Commissioner. An 'investment company' in this context refers to the definition given by the Investment Company Act of 1940.

This law allows associations, subsidiaries, or affiliates to submit fingerprints from directors, officers, employees, or job applicants to law enforcement to check for criminal records related to specific crimes like robbery or fraud. The Department of Justice and local agencies can provide criminal history information if requested properly, and if an individual's criminal record poses an unreasonable risk, employment can be denied. Requests require written consent and can incur fees. Information must remain confidential and only be used for its intended purpose. The term 'affiliate' denotes corporations related through control.

This law states that anyone convicted of a crime involving dishonesty or a breach of trust is not allowed to be involved with the workings of a savings association without getting written permission from the commissioner first. This applies to any sort of involvement, whether direct or indirect.

Savings associations are also prohibited from allowing such individuals to get involved in any capacity unless they have the commissioner's prior approval.

An association in California can issue letters of credit, which are commercial guarantees for payment, following specific rules. They must follow the Uniform Commercial Code or the Uniform Customs and Practice for Documentary Credits Act. The letter of credit must clearly state it's a letter of credit, have a set expiration date or term, and a limited amount. To fulfill the letter's promise, specific documents need to be shown, not based on actual performance of the agreement. The person who requested the letter (account party) must repay what the association pays out. If the association advances money without getting paid back right away, this counts as a loan and must meet certain rules about credit limits.

This section allows an association to choose which specific section of the law they are making a loan or investment under when more than one option is available. It also permits them to divide that loan or investment across different categories or move it between categories as needed.

This law allows associations, like banks or credit unions, to offer services to other financial institutions as long as they follow existing laws. They can keep a non-interest-bearing account at another bank if it relates to their work with another financial institution. They can also accept non-interest-bearing deposits from these institutions for various operational reasons, and these deposits can be withdrawn at any time. However, these deposits do not give the institution any voting rights in the association.

This law prevents anyone connected to a savings association from receiving any kind of payment or compensation related to arranging loans from that association or its subsidiaries.

It also prohibits savings associations from giving or anyone accepting kickbacks or compensations for referring business related to real estate loan closings. Additionally, no one should share fees from real estate closing services unless services are actually performed. Real estate closing services include things like title searches, title insurance, document preparation, property surveys, and pest inspections.

This law section protects employees of savings associations from being fired or discriminated against if they report potential legal violations by the association or its staff. If an employee believes they were wrongfully dismissed or discriminated against, they can file a lawsuit within two years and must notify the commissioner. If the court finds a violation occurred, it can require the employer to hire the employee back, pay damages, or take other corrective actions. However, these protections do not cover employees who were complicit in the legal violations or who knowingly provide false information to authorities.