JURISDICTIONAL EXCEPTION RULE

If any part of USPAP is contrary to the law or public policy of any jurisdiction, only that part shall be void and of no force or effect in that jurisdiction.

Comment: The purpose of the JURISDICTIONAL EXCEPTION RULE is strictly limited to providing a saving or severability clause intended to preserve the balance of USPAP if one or more of its parts are determined to be contrary to law or public policy of a jurisdiction. By logical extension, there can be no violation of USPAP by an appraiser disregarding, with proper disclosure, only the part or parts of USPAP that are void and of no force and effect in a particular assignment by operation of legal authority. It is misleading for an appraiser to disregard a part or parts of USPAP as void and of no force and effect in a particular assignment without identifying in the appraiser’s report the part or parts disregarded and the legal authority justifying this action.

As used in the JURISDICTIONAL EXCEPTION RULE, law means a body of rules with binding legal force established by controlling governmental authority. This broad meaning includes, without limitation, the federal and state constitutions; legislative and court-made law; and administrative rules, regulations, and ordinances. Public policy refers to more or less well-defined moral and ethical standards of conduct, currently and generally accepted by the community as a whole, and recognized by the courts with the aid of statutes, judicial precedents, and other similar available evidence. Jurisdiction refers to the legal authority to legislate, apply, or interpret law in any form at the federal, state, and local levels of government.  

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