Compass Responds to NWMLS

As has been reported in the media, Compass has filed a response to NWMLS’s motion to dismiss. I wrote about that motion here and called it powerful and persuasive, because it was. But I also said that NWMLS’s arguments will seem bulletproof because the brief was well-written and well-argued, and that I am certain to completely change my mind once I see Compass’s response to this motion.

Well, that happened. Compass’s response is equally well-written, well-drafted, and well-argued. So now I’m convinced of their arguments. We’re going to get into some of them because they all point the way towards the future of the industry one way or another.

But one important theme is how important PLS.com v. NAR, the Ninth Circuit decision, is to Compass… and to future litigants in this arena. Seeing as how I went deep into that decision back in the day, this will be useful for us to analyze this brief. I think NWMLS might be in some trouble, actually. Turns out, because of that case, this one could be important for how courts might look at MLS rules in general.

As always, this is edutainment, not legal advice and I am not your lawyer. Please ask your own attorney for actual legal advice.

Let’s do this.