Dealing with Problems Tag

By: Scott Welker In American law, there is a long, quiet history of the ill suing the people who made them ill. Dating at least back to the 1800s, defendants have been held liable in court for negligently spreading infectious diseases. These cases have run the gambit, including lawsuits for the spread of tuberculosis (1953), smallpox (1910), typhoid fever (1896), and whooping cough (1884),...

Recently I dealt with an issue in a condominium association where the tenant of a unit owner was out of control. The boorish and, in some cases, criminal behavior of this tenant made life miserable for many of the residents of an otherwise quiet condominium community. Despite the HOA board’s attempts to have the unit owner intervene and resolve the situation, nothing was done until the...

If you think hurricanes, wildfires, tornadoes and floods won’t happen to you or that you don’t need to insure against these disasters, you’re among the nearly half of U.S. homeowners and renters who lack the insurance coverage to deal with potential losses, according to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC). In a recent NAIC national survey, about 48...

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With difficult economic times over the last several years, the community association industry has seen a rise in thefts and embezzlement in homeowner and condominium associations. Many associations believe their money is safe and it is difficult to steal funds belonging to the association.  This is an unfortunate and incorrect assumption. For the information on a current case of fraud...

When I’m in my own condominium unit, I can play by my own rules. If I don’t feel like wearing pants while I fire up the grill on my patio, I’m free to take that risk. If I want to burn incense and crank up the heat and some Yanni while I perfect my Bikram Yoga poses, I can do that too. So, if my home is my domain, where I am free to do as I wish, what’s with all the dirty looks I get when I...

It may seem odd to look to a law firm for advice about conflict resolution. However, as litigators specializing in community associations, our firm sees all types of conflicts from start to finish. Believe it or not, we would rather assist our clients with preventative care than go to court with them over an avoidable problem (or see anyone get hurt). This article will address two types of...

Manager Embezzled as much as $4 million Elaborate scheme involving multiple associations Ran the entire day-to-day operation, writing and depositing checks, balancing the books, and getting bank statements Bookkeeper Embezzled $398,000 Forged board member signatures to obtain bank loans Convicted, but skipped bail and is at large Previous conviction for tax fraud; served 14 months Manager...

As an HOA board member, you’re constantly between a rock and a hard place. No matter what you do, one contingent of owners hounds you for not doing enough, another congratulates you for doing a great job, and yet a third scolds you for doing too much. This predicament arises over and over, whether the board is dealing with rules enforcement, assessment collection, or simply deciding how often...