HOAleader.com - Tip of the Week - April 27, 2018
Published: Fri, 04/27/18
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California Broadens Board Members’ Protections; What’s the Rule in Other States?
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The California legislature recently amended section 5800 of California’s Davis Stirling Act, which covers when community association directors can be personally liable for their actions.
But don’t get too excited. The change doesn’t affect most board members. In this week’s tip, we explain and give background on directors’ personal liability in that state and others.
“It’s not a big change, but it clarified something in the law,” explains Rian W. Jones, a shareholder and the civil litigation chair at the law firm of Epsten Grinnell & Howell in San Diego.
“What they added in 5800, subdivision a, where it used to say “an association that manages a common interest development that is residential,” they added “or mixed use,” states Jones.
“There have been a lot of developments that have come on line that are mixed-use developments in the downtown areas of San Diego, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and other cities,” explains Jones. “The ground floor or maybe the first two floors have commercial space, and the upper floors are residential. Here, this change is encouraging people who are commercial owners to serve on the board, too.
“Before this, they didn’t have the same protections as those of a residential owner who serves on the board,” states Jones. “The statute specifically protected volunteer directors of residential CIDs [common interest developments]. The Davis-Stirling Act doesn’t apply to a purely commercial common interest development; they have their own set of rules in the civil code or corporations code, and those rules aren’t as stringent as the Davis-Stirling Act.”
So is there a general rule you can take away on board members’ personal liability in California? Sure, and we explain that, along with the standards in other states, in our new article: https://www.hoaleader.com/members/3710.cfm
Best regards,
Matt Humphrey
President
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Recent articles posted at HOAleader.com:
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California Clarifies HOA Directors' Personal Liability; But is There Really Much Change?
The California legislature recently amended section 5800 of California's Davis Stirling Act, which covers when community association directors can be personally liable for their actions.
Click here to read full article:
https://www.hoaleader.com/members/California-Clarifies-HOA-Directors-Personal-Liability-But-There-Really-Much-Change.cfm
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HOA Board Members and Fiduciary Duties: What You Must Know to Fulfill Your Duty to Your Association and Protect Yourself from Personal Liability
Did you miss yesterday's webinar on HOA Board Members and Fiduciary Duties? If so you missed a critical session for your entire board to review. Are you confident you know every scenario where you might trip up and expose yourself to personal liability by failing to live up to this important duty? Set aside an hour of your time to learn what you need to know and ensure you're not risking your own financial security by making common--but easily avoidable--mistakes while volunteering as an HOA board member.
Click here to read full article:
https://www.hoaleader.com/products/hoa-board-fiduciary-duties-webinar-b.cfm
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Court Refuses to Enforce HOA Rental Restriction on the Books for Nearly 50 Years
Homeowners are working very hard to get around HOAs' rental rules, and a South Carolina court has just handed them a win. In this week's tip, we discuss the latest case.
Click here to read full article:
https://www.hoaleader.com/public/Court-Refuses-Enforce-HOA-Rental-Restriction-on-Books-for-Nearly-50-Years.cfm
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South Carolina Court Tells HOA Its 48-Year-Old Rental Rule Isn't Enforceable
Homeowners are working very hard to get around HOAs' rental rules, and a South Carolina court has just handed them a win. In the latest case, an appellate court seems to have thrown its arms up and said, We can't decide!- Because both the owners' and the HOA's interpretation of the governing documents was reasonable, the court determined it couldn't uphold the HOA's rental restriction.
Click here to read full article:
https://www.hoaleader.com/members/South-Carolina-Court-Tells-HOA-Its-48YearOld-Rental-Rule-Isnt-Enforceable.cfm
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Virginia Agency: HOAs Shouldn't Be Afraid to Question Requests for Accommodation
In this week's tip, we report on a Virginia government agency that has issued guidance that essentially tells HOA and condo boards that they can ask reasonable questions in response to requests for comfort animals, and that may mean questions about the duration and location of the treatment the requester has purportedly received, plus more.
Click here to read full article:
https://www.hoaleader.com/public/Virginia-Agency-HOAs-Shouldnt-Be-Afraid-Question-Requests-for-Accommodation.cfm
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