Many parties engaged in litigation are primarily concerned with resolving their disputes through the most cost-efficient means. In the early stages of litigation, clients pose some version of the following question: “Who is going to pay my legal fees?” Under the common law, each party should bear their own legal expenses incurred. However, entitlement to […]
The Value of Your Homeowners Association Attorney
There are several individuals that bring value to your association. Your volunteer board, your manager, your interested members that may serve in other capacities, and your supportive and assessment-paying membership. Vendors also can bring great value to your association in many ways. Today, we are considering the value that your association attorney brings to your […]
The Art of Picking Professionals: To Choose or Not to Choose
Running the day-to-day business of a condo development or an HOA of any size—be it a sprawling, multi-building community, or a single self-contained building—requires not just a functional board but a team of competent outside professionals. These professionals keep things running smoothly and efficiently for residents and boards—from the legal counsel who advises board members […]
Actions to Take When Your HOA Board is Faced with a Lawsuit
You’re being sued, what do you do? You know that being faced with a lawsuit is a serious matter and absolutely should not be ignored. That being said, there are some important actions you need to take as an HOA board member to avoid setting the homeowners association up for failure and getting yourself in […]
Service of Process – What is it?
For a court to have authority to make legal decisions and enter a judgment against someone, the court must have both personal and subject matter jurisdiction over that person. Subject matter jurisdiction involves the court’s ability or power to hear certain types of cases, whereas personal jurisdiction is the court’s power over a particular party. […]
This Interest May Be Common, But It’s Still Privileged Re: California Evidence Rules
In an opinion issued yesterday, the California Court of Appeal ruled that litigation meetings held by a homeowner’s association counsel with individual homeowners did not result in a waiver of the attorney-client privilege. Seahaus La Jolla Owners Ass’n v. Superior Court, Cal. Ct. Appeal Case No. D064567 (March 12, 2014). Read more………
If You’re My HOA’s Attorney, You Represent Me, Right? (No, Not Quite.)
As a community association attorney, I attend a lot of homeowner meetings to discuss legal issues and provide education to boards and owners. I enjoy the opportunity to meet the people who live in my client’s communities. It’s always great to put faces to names and get a feel for the relationship dynamics that make […]
The Association’s Attorney Should Be A Good Listener
I was recently interviewed by a condominium association board that wanted to replace the association’s attorney. During that interview, one board member made a startling comment. She remarked that, in her opinion, the association’s attorney did not listen to the board. Read more………
Attorney Invoices: To Disclose or Not To Disclose
Can the Board disclose our attorney fee invoices to the general membership in an effort to be transparent? While the motivation is appropriate, and transparency is important to a healthy association, disclosure of the attorney fee invoices may create more problems than it solves. Read more…….
HOA’s and Contingency Cases
A more apt title might be “Why Lawyers Don’t Take HOA Cases on Contingency.” I am frequently asked to take HOA and condo cases on a contingency, but these cases are not the types of cases lawyers can litigate on a contingency, meaning you only pay the lawyer if you win. Read more…….
Essential Documents in a Collection Trial
Has your association been involved in a collection matter that went to trial? Very few of our collection cases make it to trial, but when they do, it can be unnerving for board members and managers because it may be unfamiliar territory. This article will address the documents that are essential in a collection trial. […]
Discovery – It’s Not Just a Channel
Although Discovery is a very interesting cable channel, it is also a broad all-encompassing term to describe the fact-finding process in a lawsuit. Lawyers are literally discovering facts, evidence, witnesses, and case theories utilizing a variety of discovery tools. Without the aid of discovery tools it would be nearly impossible for lawyers to litigate civil […]
You May Have Recourse When a Court Denies Your Board Attorneys’ Fees
Collections have become an area of increasing concern for condominium associations, as some unit owners struggle to pay their common charges on time and in full. As unit owners’ debt continues to rise, associations are left with few options to collect: a lien on the unit and a lawsuit against the individual unit owner. Read […]
So You’ve Been Sued — Now What? Handling Lawsuits
Lawsuits are usually not an association’s go-to method for dispute resolution. Expensive and time-consuming, they can quickly turn into a financial burden and may create strained relations in the community. Unfortunately, in some cases there’s no other way out. Last year a couple filed a suit against a neighbor, the association, individual board members, and […]
Homeowner Has No Right to Lawyer at Association Meeting—CA Court of Appeal
A property owner’s right to attend a meeting of a homeowner’s association does not necessarily include the right to send a lawyer to represent the owner at the meeting, the Fourth District Court of Appeal has ruled. Div. One yesterday certified for publication its May 22 opinion, upholding a San Diego Superior Court judge’s order […]
Hiring Professionals – A Winning Approach
One of the key questions facing volunteer community association boards is, “When should we hire a professional to assist us?” This question oftentimes will apply to professional management companies, construction professionals, vendors and service providers, accountants, attorneys and Read more…….
Trusting your Professional Service Providers
Homeowners associations are comprised of people from all walks of life, and for that very reason their boards of directors often consist of individuals who bring various levels of knowledge to the administration of the association Read more……..
So Now You’re On the Board
The first steps to superior board performance are clarifying your board’s job and then following through with appropriate plans, actions and evaluation of results. The checklists presented here are intended to assist you in those tasks. They cover a significant number of your responsibilities. The checklists will apply to virtually any association. To use them, […]