HOAleader.com - Tip of the Week - January 4, 2013
Published: Fri, 01/04/13
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Lean or Meaty HOA Meeting Minutes: Is There a Middle Ground?
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In this week's tip, we answer a reader's question
about whether it's OK to ignore your attorney's
advice in favor of "just-the-facts, ma'am" minutes
and instead include a blow-by-blow account of
everything discussed at your HOA meeting.
Our experts stand by their long-standing advice
that it's unwise to include detail upon detail
in meeting minutes. "We strictly follow the
corporate minutes policy," says Duane McPherson,
the Carrollton, Texas-based division president
at RealManage, an association management firm
that oversees properties in Arizona, California,
Colorado, Florida, Louisiana, Nevada, and Texas.
"It's basically mentioning whatever the issue
was, who voted for and against it, and whether
it passed or not-and that's pretty much it."
Here are just a few reasons experts recommend
that policy:
1. What was discussed is irrelevant. "I typically
tell my clients that the discussion that's
held isn't binding," says Kristen L. Rosenbeck,
a partner at the Mulcahy Law Firm PC in Phoenix,
who advises many associations. "Even if it's
included in the meeting minutes, it doesn't
matter. What's binding is the actual vote. So
I want to see in the minutes, 'Here's the vote,
a discussion on the floor was held, a vote was
taken, and here are the results of the vote.'
You might feel better knowing what was discussed,
but it doesn't matter how you got to a
conclusion. What matters is that you got to this
particular conclusion."
2. Detailed minutes open doors you don't want
to open. "I think there's a lot of case law
to show the problems that can occur with
having very verbose minutes," says McPherson.
"Also, if they're not very brief and include
'he said,' 'she said,' that begins to take into
consideration board members' personal feelings.
When that happens, you get problems."
True, says Alessandra Stivelman, an associate
who specializes in community association law
at Eisinger Brown Lewis Frankel & Chaiet in
Hollywood, Fla. "You may be able to take a
middle ground and list all the people who spoke
on a particular topic but not include what
they spoke about," she explains. "Because if
you include that detail, you'll have people
saying, 'But that's not what I said.' Or,
'That's not what I meant.'"
Those aren't the only reasons our experts
recommend lean minutes. Find out more, along
with whether taping meetings is an acceptable
compromise, in our new article,
When an HOA Board Member Wants Minute-by-Minute Minutes.
http://www.hoaleader.com/members/801.cfm
Best regards,
Matt Humphrey
President
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Recent articles posted at HOAleader.com:
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Are You Questioning Your HOA Manager's Advice? Discussion Forum Follow-Up
What if you're not sure your manager's giving you the right advice? Here we
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his game and what to do if you're in a minority of board members who believe
that.
Click here to read full article:
http://www.hoaleader.com/members/Are-You-Questioning-Your-HOA-Managers-Advice-Discussion-Forum-FollowUp.cfm
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An HOA Director Has Abstained from a Vote--Are They Wise or Just Cowardly?
In this week's tip, we discuss the dubious practice of condo or homeowner
association board members abstaining from votes.
Click here to read full article:
http://www.hoaleader.com/public/An-HOA-Director-Has-Abstained-from-a-VoteAre-They-Wise-or-Just-Cowardly.cfm
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HOA Board Votes: What If a Board Member Abstains Just to Avoid Controversy?
Discussion Forum Follow-up
An HOAleader.com reader asks, "My board had an issue where we had to vote on
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Click here to read full article:
http://www.hoaleader.com/members/HOA-Board-Votes-What-If-a-Board-Member-Abstains-Just-to-Avoid-Controversy-Discussion-Forum-Followup.cfm
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What to Consider When Your HOA's Considering Going Paperless
In this week's tip, we share details about the growing trend of HOAs shunning
paper.
Click here to read full article:
http://www.hoaleader.com/public/What-to-Consider-When-Your-HOAs-Considering-Going-Paperless.cfm
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HOA Recordkeeping: The Pros and Cons of Going Paperless
According to Ohio community association lawyers David W. Kaman and Jay
Cusimano, a growing number of boards are considering going paperless. What
would it mean for an HOA to go paperless, and what are the pros and cons? Here's
the skinny.
Click here to read full article:
http://www.hoaleader.com/members/HOA-Recordkeeping-The-Pros-and-Cons-of-Going-Paperless.cfm
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