Case Name: Paul E. HARRIS, Individually and Harris Realty, Inc. of Panama City, Petitioners, v. FLORIDA REAL ESTATE COMMISSION, Respondent; FLORIDA REAL ESTATE COMMISSION, Petitioner, v. Bruce CHILDERS, Individually and Childers Realty, Inc., Respondents
Court: Florida District Court of Appeal
Jurisdiction: Florida
Decision Date: 1978-05-05
Citations: 358 So. 2d 1123
Docket Number: Nos. HH-13 and HH-396
Parties: Paul E. HARRIS, Individually and Harris Realty, Inc. of Panama City, Petitioners, v. FLORIDA REAL ESTATE COMMISSION, Respondent. FLORIDA REAL ESTATE COMMISSION, Petitioner, v. Bruce CHILDERS, Individually and Childers Realty, Inc., Respondents.
Judges: MILLS, Acting C. J., concurs.
Reporter: Southern Reporter, Second Series
Volume: 358
Pages: 1123–1128

Head Matter:
Paul E. HARRIS, Individually and Harris Realty, Inc. of Panama City, Petitioners, v. FLORIDA REAL ESTATE COMMISSION, Respondent. FLORIDA REAL ESTATE COMMISSION, Petitioner, v. Bruce CHILDERS, Individually and Childers Realty, Inc., Respondents.
Nos. HH-13 and HH-396.
District Court of Appeal of Florida, First District.
May 5, 1978.
Rehearing Denied June 16, 1978.
Sam Spector and Cynthia S. Tunnicliff of Spector & Tunnicliff, Tallahassee, for petitioner in No. HH-13 and respondent in No; HH-396.
Howard Hadley, Winter Garden, for respondent in No. HH-13 and petitioner in No. HH-396.

Opinion:
BOOTH, Judge.
These causes are before us on petitions for review of agency action, and have been consolidated in this Court. Both cases involve action by the Florida Real Estate Commission (FREC) undertaking to regulate the use of trade names which include the name of a franchisor.
Petitioner Harris and Respondent Child-ers are registered real estate brokers whose businesses are located in Panama City and Pensacola, Florida, respectively. They entered into franchise agreements with Century 21 Real Estate, the franchisor, whereby as franchisees, Harris and Childers became entitled to use the trade name, trade mark, service mark, and logo of Century 21 and to secure management services, personnel training and advertising services from the franchisor. The franchise agreements require that the franchisor's name appear first, followed by the name of the franchisee. Petitioner Harris and Respondent Childers applied to FREC to change their corporate names in accordance with Florida Statute § 475.42(l)(k), and their franchise agreements.
Meanwhile, the matter of franchising was the subject of a meeting of FREC held March 31, 1977, at which time various "guidelines and directives" relative to franchising in the State were formulated. The Commission met again on May 18, 1977, approved the directives and instructed immediate staff implementation. Investigations were to begin within 90 days of that date. Among the "directives" approved at the May 18 meeting was the following:
"Any real estate broker desiring to use the name of a Franchisor in connection with his own name must register the name as a part of his own trade name and same Franchisor's name must follow rather than immediately appearing above or before the broker's name."
As a result of the foregoing "directive" both Childers and Harris, in May and July of 1977, respectively, were denied registration of their corporate names which showed "Century 21" preceding the name of the realtor.
Childers petitioned under Florida Statute § 120.56 to have the "directives" declared invalid, on two grounds:
(1) That the "directives" were "rules" and not properly adopted under Chapter 120 and
(2) Even if properly adopted, the directives exceeded the delegated authority of the Commission.
Hearing was held on Childers' petition and on September 21, 1977, the hearing examiner entered the final order holding that the statement or directive requiring the franchisor's name to follow that of the franchisee was a rule and, since not properly adopted, was invalid.
Petitioner FREC seeks review of the order of the hearing examiner ruling that the directive in question is a rule and not properly adopted. FREC, at its February meeting shortly prior to oral argument in these cases, cancelled the May 18, 1977, directives as "not workable." The directive here in question has now, presumably, been withdrawn along with the other directives on franchisor-franchisee real estate operations in Florida, but the question still warrants our determination. We hold the hearing examiner was correct in ruling that the directive in question was a rule and invalid because not promulgated as required by Chapter 120. State, D. O. A. v. Stevens, 344 So.2d 290 (1st DCA 1977).
The second basis of Childers' petition, before the hearing examiner and in this Court, is that the Commission has no authority, by properly adopted rule or otherwise, to regulate trade names by refusing to register a requested name. The same contention is made by Petitioner Harris, whose review in this Court under Florida Statute § 120.68 is from the action of FREC in refusing to register the requested trade name of his company.
The Commission's brief asserts that there has been no final agency action in the Harris case which is subject to review by this Court, and that Harris "should have demanded a hearing under § 120.57." In oral argument before this Court the Commission conceded that refusal to register Harris' trade name was a final agency action, and we agree. General Development Corporation v. Division of State Planning, etc., 353 So.2d 1199, 1207 (1st DCA 1977). Further, the Commission cannot be heard to assert that its own dispositive action was not taken with the formalities which are the agency's responsibility. An agency's failure to enter a proper order, or to afford a hearing, is an occasion for judicial review, not an impediment of it. In the instant case, there are no material issues of fact which would require a formal proceeding under § 120.57(1) and nothing to be gained by now requiring the agency to provide an informal proceeding under § 120.-57(2).
The question before us is one of law. The record for judicial review in this Court sufficiently presents the determination below and is as described in Florida Statute § 120.68(5)(c):
"The agency's written document expressing the action, and other written documents identified by the agency as having been considered by it before its action and used as a basis for its action . if there has been no proceeding under § 120.57."
The letter of Petitioner Harris requesting the name change registration and the agency's letter of July 8, 1977, constitute the record for judicial review and clearly express the action of the agency. Judicial review under § 120.68 does not depend on whether an agency has seen fit to formalize its communications with the complaining party.
The question before us on the merits is whether the Commission has power under Florida Statutes, Chapter 475, to reject names submitted to it for registration, or to dictate the sequence of the words used within the names submitted for registration. We hold that it does not, and that the duty to place the name of a broker in good standing on the registration list is purely ministerial.
Florida Statute § 475.01(4) requires the Commission keep a registration list showing the names and addresses of salesmen and brokers. Subsection (5) of that statute defines a "registrant" as a person whose name and address "has been placed and lawfully remains on said registration list" and (10) provides that a registration certificate "shall be issued to every broker . as soon as registration is granted and renewed annually thereafter as long as renewals thereof shall be granted." Florida Statute § 475.20 provides that renewals of certificates of registration "shall be issued upon written request," on a form provided by the Commission, accompanied by the required fee. Florida Statute § 475.42(l)(k) provides:
"No person shall operate as a real estate broker under a trade name without causing the same to be noted in the records of the commission and placed on his certificate, or so operate as a member of a partnership or as a corporation or as an officer or manager thereof, unless said partnership or corporation is the holder of a valid current registration certificate."
Under the foregoing statutes, it is the duty of the Commission to keep a current list of registrants and to issue certificates evidencing that registration. For their part, registrants are required to maintain their registration in a current status and to supply the Commission with the correct information, including the accurate trade names under which their businesses are operating. There is no authority given to the Commission to refuse a requested name change by the registered broker.
The Commission relies to some extent on Florida Statute § 475.47 and urges that it be broadly construed to allow rejection of names which it feels would be misleading to the public. Florida Statute § 475.47 provides:
"It shall be unlawful for any person to publish or cause to be published by means of newspaper, periodical, radio, television, or written or printed matter, any false or misleading information for the purpose of offering for sale or for the purpose of causing or inducing any other person to purchase real estate located in the state, or to acquire an interest in the title thereof."
The statute plainly deals with misleading information in the promotion of sales and requires a finding that the person is guilty of disseminating false or misleading information for the purpose of inducing the sale of real estate in Florida. The statute is not authority for the action of the Commission in these cases.
In Lee v. Delmar, 66 So.2d 252 (Fla.1953), the Florida Real Estate Commission adopted a resolution which prohibited salesmen from operating on a part-time basis and, pursuant to that resolution, denied a salesman's application for renewal of his registration. The Supreme Court ruled that the resolution was beyond the power delegated to the Commission and invalid, stating:
"The right to work, earn a living and acquire and possess property from the fruits of one's labor is an inalienable right. There may be certain trades, professions or occupations so clothed with the public interest that they may be regulated by the Legislature in the public interest. When any business, occupation or profession is so clothed with the public interest, then the Legislature must provide the yardstick for such regulation.

The power of the appellant is limited to the yardstick laid down by the Legislature and this yardstick does not include power of the appellant to regulate or prescribe the time a real estate salesman must devote to that particular occupation. .
*
It is clear that no such power, as that attempted to be exercised by the appellant, was granted to it by the Legislature and the adoption of this resolution attempting to exercise such power was an unlawful assumption of power on the part of appellant. . . . "
Accordingly, the action of the Commission in refusing registration of the trade names of Petitioner Harris is REVERSED and the order of the hearing examiner in the Childers' case, AFFIRMED, and the causes REMANDED with directions that the trade names of both Harris and Childers be registered as requested.
MILLS, Acting C. J., concurs.
ERVIN, J., concurs in part and dissents in part.
. Ervin v. Capital Weekly Post, 97 So.2d 464 (Fla.1957).