Condo Board President Makes History

Source: Adrian J. Adams Esq. 

Here is an interesting bit of trivia. We can credit (or blame) a condo board president for making Donald Trump President of the United States.

Kellyanne Conway is a campaign manager, strategist, and pollster. Trump met Conway when she served on the condominium board at the Trump World Tower in Manhattan.

According to a Washington Post interview, Trump would show up at board meetings to hear residents’ concerns. He liked how Conway handled board meetings and followed her career managing political campaigns.

When the time was right, Trump convinced Ms. Conway to run his campaign. Thanks to her steady hand, Mr. Trump is now choosing his cabinet and meeting world leaders.

NOTE: I’ve known for years that if you can successfully run a condo board, you can do anything.

Missing Board Resolution

Source: Adrian J. Adams Esq. 

QUESTION: We have a board resolution dated April 17, 2013, signed by the secretary. But there is no 

mention of this resolution either in the agenda or the approved minutes for this date. I am curious if the resolution is in force nonetheless.

ANSWER: Yes, the resolution is likely in force. The fact that it was signed by the secretary and is part of your corporate records indicates it was authorized by the board. Another indicator of authenticity is if the resolution has been enforced by prior boards.

If you wish, you can reaffirm the resolution at your next board meeting and include it in the minutes. If you do, you should add background information about it being passed in 2013 and the board is simply correcting the record. If, on the other hand the current board is unhappy with the resolution, it can vote to rescind it.

Board Meeting Agendas

Source: Adrian J. Adams Esq. 

QUESTION:

Section 4930 of the Civil Code provides for an agenda to be included with notices but it does not provide a definition of agenda or what the bare bones requirements for one are. I hope your firm will be able to expound an answer.

ANSWER: There are two statutes that refer to agendas:

Notice of a board meeting shall contain the agenda for the meeting. (Civ. Code §4920(d).)

[T]he board may not discuss or take action on any item at a nonemergency meeting unless the item was placed on the agenda included in the notice that was distributed…” (Civ. Code §4930(a).)

Legislators often leave a lot unsaid when they enact laws. They either assume we know what they are talking about or they misjudged things. If nobody can agree on what a statute means, the courts sometimes weigh in. In this case, I don’t think we need a judge to tell us what an agenda means.

Definition. Black’s Law Dictionary defines “agenda” as “items of business or discussion to be brought up at a meeting.” I checked Robert’s Rules of Order but didn’t find anything useful. I then checked the Complete Idiot’s Guide to Parliamentary Procedure and found the following:

If you really want to manage your meeting, you need an agenda. With an agenda, the specific items that are expected to come up at a meeting are placed into the order of business.

How detailed should an open meeting agenda be? It needs to contain enough information so members can easily understand what will be discussed at the board meeting.

Maintenance Issues. For example, if the board intends to discuss installation of a new landscape sprinkler system, reroofing a building, and repainting the clubhouse, a generic agenda item called “Maintenance” is not enough. No one reading the posted agenda will have any idea what that means. The agenda should list each item of business. That way, members can decide if they want to attend and give their opinions during open forum. See sample agenda for open meetings.

Executive Session. Notice of executive session meetings must also contain an agenda. (Civ. Code §4920(d).) Because executive sessions are confidential and topics are generally noted in open meeting minutes (Civ. Code §4935(e)), agenda descriptions are more circumspect. See sample agenda for executive sessions.

RECOMMENDATION. To learn more about parliamentary procedure, I don’t recommend buying the unabridged Robert’s Rules of Order. All you need is a simplified version that covers the basics. Amazon.com has a variety of materials you can purchase.

Election Apathy & Quorum Requirements

Source: Adrian J. Adams Esq.

QUESTION:

We have spent a countless amount of money in the election process trying to meet quorum. How many attempts does the HOA need to make before the current board just continues/rolls over as the board?

ANSWER: There is no required number of attempts to meet quorum. If it is clear the membership is not interested in participating, the board can stop. For example, if you have 100 units and only 9 send in their ballots, it’s pretty clear no one is interested, which means reaching a 50% or even 30% quorum may not be achievable.

I had a large association with a 15% quorum requirement that could not get more that 12% participation no matter how hard they tried. We sought and received court approval of the 12% so they could open and count ballots.

If quorum is within striking distance, directors should put in the effort to round up more votes. If not, the board does not need to waste time, money, and energy trying to get members to participate. The existing board can continue in office and appoint replacements if they are anxious to step down.

RECOMMENDATION: Associations should amend their bylaws to eliminate cumulative voting and quorum requirements for the election of directors. Apathy will make it difficult to get the amendment passed but it’s worth the effort. 

Illegal & Unethical

Source: Adrian J. Adams Esq.

QUESTION:

Our association recently recovered funds from a lawsuit which the homeowners were charged a special assessment. The board opted to place the funds in the reserve account rather than reimburse the homeowners for their payments. Is this ethical or legal?

ANSWER: Unless the board promised to reimburse owners or somehow made it a condition of the special assessment, it is neither illegal nor unethical to put the money in the reserve account.

Reserve Funding. In fact, not doing so may be imprudent if your reserves are badly underfunded. Failing to fund the reserve account now could result in special assessments later when large repairs are needed and reserves are insufficient. Then everyone would rail against the board for not funding the reserves.

Who Gets the Money? Also, for those units sold after the special assessment but before the recovery, who gets the money? Does it go to the ones who paid it but no longer have a legal interest in the association or the ones who bought units and lay claim to the reimbursement? That could get messy.

RECOMMENDATION: Prudent fiscal management is one of the duties of the board. If you disagree with how they are handling the association’s money, you should consider running for the board.

Seating Arrangement

Source: Adrian J. Adams Esq.

QUESTION: Is there a seating protocol for board members on the dais? Is it appropriate for the manager and attorney to be seated on the dais? What is common practice?

ANSWER: There is no seating protocol that I’m aware of. I checked Robert’s Rules of Order and found nothing on the subject.

Seating Arrangements. I’ve been in meetings where the board, manager and attorney were (i) on an elevated dais with everyone facing the audience, (ii) seated at tables in a “u” shape (common with larger boards), (iii) seated at a round table with the backs of some directors to the audience, (iv)  seated randomly in comfy chairs in someone’s living room, and (v) seated in folding chairs on one side of a pool and the audience on the other side (a quasi separation of church and state–if you could walk on water, you could join the board). My favorite is where the board met in the alley next to a dumpster and everyone stood (it made for very short meetings).

On A Dais. When the board meets on a dais facing the audience, the most common position for the manager and attorney is at the end of the table. The second most common is for the attorney to be seated next to the president so he/she can consult with the attorney as-needed during the course of the meeting.

RECOMMENDATION: Generally, the larger the association, the more formal the seating arrangements. Boards should pick one that is comfortable for them.

Election Confidential

Source: Adrian J. Adams Esq.

QUESTION:For Christmas, I gave out gag gifts to my fellow board members–a condom for the men and an early pregnancy test kit for the ladies. The recipients are all over 65; most are in their 70s. A week later I received a letter from our HOA attorney accusing me of sexual harassment. At a meet the candidates forum, a shareholder asked a question that referenced the content of the letter. Do I have any protection from this confidential letter being shared?

ANSWER: If there is one thing I’ve learned, it’s that people like to talk–especially when directors behave badly. Your options are quite limited. No court is going to order people to stop talking about you. Can you sue for defamation? If members truthfully describe what you did, you would spend a lot of money and lose. Moreover, your litigation would alienate everyone and they would talk about you, your prank, and your lawsuit endlessly.

RECOMMENDATION: If you want to run for the board and win, you should own-up to your gag and apologize for it. If members believe your apology is sincere, you have a better chance of winning their votes.