Headstrong HOA Board Member Puts Himself in Harm’s Way Over Fair Housing Issues

In a recent case decided by the D.C. Court of Appeals, the court heard a matter involving the intersection between community association governance and fair housing law. In this case, Wilfred Welsh, a board member of the Chaplin Woods Homeowners Association (the “HOA”), sued fellow HOA members Beverly McNeil and Alvin Elliott (the “McNeils”), claiming that the McNeil’s violated the HOA’s bylaws by renting out their townhouse for use as a residence by a group of recovering alcoholics and substance abusers. The terms of the rental agreement did not meet certain requirements of the HOA’s bylaws, primarily because the lease did not name the persons who would occupy the premises. Mr. Welsh initially sued the McNeils in Superior Court for leasing in violation of the bylaws and without the approval of the HOA’s board of directors.    Read the article………………