Upcoming Seminars

On February 19, I'll be teaching a seminar for NBI, Legal Aspects of Condominium Development and Homeowners' Associations in Salt Lake City. My topics will include:

SMOOTH OPERATION, MANAGEMENT AND CONVERSIONS
1:00 - 2:00, Lincoln W. Hobbs

Understanding the Concept of Initial Consent of Homeowners' Associations
Resolving Conflicts Between Governmental Rules and Association Rules
Maintenance and Improvements
Rights and Obligations of Unit Owners
Meeting Procedures, Voting and Elections
Operation of Association
Management and Control
Setting Up Budgets, Reserves and Special Assessments
Fulfilling Insurance Obligations
Managing Conversions
ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS
2:00 - 3:00, Lincoln W. Hobbs

Understanding Who Your Client Is
What if Provision of the Governing Documents Conflicts With the Law?
Avoiding Conflicts of Interest
Determining and Collecting Attorneys' Fees



Karin Hobbs will be presenting with me; her subjects will include:

CONFLICT RESOLUTION AND CLAIMS AGAINST DEVELOPERS
3:15 - 4:15, Karin S. Hobbs

Construction Defect Litigation
Association Methods of Enforcing Governing Documents
Enforcement of HOA Rules and Regulations
Owners' vs. Association Conflicts
(collection disputes, use restriction violations, major community association renovations and repairs)
Association and Board of Director's Liability Issues
(business judgment defense, statutory and contractual protections, insurance issues)
Disputes Between Individual Owners
ADR and Other Effective Dispute Resolution Strategies
Litigation Process Overview



And, if you're looking to attend a seminar in a warmer climate, I'll be presenting at CAI's Thirtieth Annual Community Law Seminar. That presentation will deal with the greening of communities; the presentation description is:

Earth, Wind & Fire:
The Environmental Debate & its
Impact on Community Associations
Lincoln W. Hobbs, esq., Amy H. Bray, esq., Loura
Sanchez, esq. and Marvin J. Nodiff, esq.
Higher energy costs, regulation of greenhouse
gases, water usage and changing values
will all start to create conflict with existing
association rules and deed restrictions. As the
most local form of governance, community
associations are uniquely positioned to adapt
to this changing environment; the challenge,
however, is to turn obstacles into opportunities.
This interactive panel discussion will kick
off an ongoing dialogue, tackle hypothetical
situations and engage attendees in seeking
solutions to these emerging challenges.

technorati

Technorati Profile

Carbon Challenge!

I recently discovered an interesting website; www.carbonrally.com. Visitors to the site can create a user name, log in, get ideas, accept challenges and keep track of their savings. An individual in Buffalo, Wyoming has clearly taken the lead.

Sign up, and challenge him!

CAI Guidelines

The Community Associations Institute (CAI)'s Center for Community Association Volunteers (CCAV) developed the Community Association Governance Guidelines (PDF)—12 principles that can help homeowner volunteer leaders build better communities.

ANNUAL MEETINGS. Conduct at least one membership meeting annually, providing at least two weeks notice to homeowners and more than two weeks if specified in the governing documents or dictated by state statute.

ASSESSMENTS. Collect assessments and other fees from homeowners in a timely and equitable manner and in accordance with state statutes and board-approved procedures.

COMMUNICATION. Provide at least one form of regular communication with residents, and use it to report substantive actions taken by the board.

CONFLICTS OF INTEREST. Disclose all personal and financial conflicts of interest before assuming a board position and, once on the board, before participating in any board decisions.

ELECTIONS. Hold fair and open elections in strict conformance with governing documents, giving all candidates an equal opportunity to express their views and permitting each candidate to have a representative observe the vote-counting process.

FINANCIAL TRANSPARENCY. Share critical information and rationale with residents about budgets, reserve funding, special assessments and other issues that could impact their financial obligations to the association. Give members an opportunity— before final decisions are made—to ask questions of a representative who is fully familiar with these financial issues.

FORECLOSURE. Initiate lien and foreclosure proceedings only as a last step in a well-defined debtcollection procedure—and only after other, less-disruptive measures have failed to resolve a serious delinquency issue in a specified period of time.

GOVERNANCE AND THE LAW. Govern and manage the community in accordance with all applicable laws and regulations. Conduct reviews of governing documents to ensure legal compliance and to determine whether amendments are necessary.

GRIEVANCES AND APPEALS. Allow residents to bring grievances before the board or a boardappointed committee, and follow well-publicized procedures that give residents the opportunity to correct violations before imposing fines or other sanctions.

RECORDS. Allow homeowners reasonable access to appropriate community records, including annual budgets and board meeting minutes.

RESERVE FUNDING. Account for anticipated long-term expenditures as part of the annual budget development process, commissioning a reserve study when professional expertise is warranted.

RULES. Enforce all rules, including architectural guidelines, uniformly, but only after seeking compliance on a voluntary basis. Distribute proposals for new rules and guidelines to all homeowners and nonowner residents. Advise them when the board will consider new rules and encourage input. Once adopted, new rules and effective dates should be distributed to every owner and resident.

Note: Laws governing community and condominium associations vary considerably from state to state. In addition to understanding and adhering to these laws, community
association leaders need to be aware of legislative and regulatory issues that could affect their associations. You can do that by joining CAI and supporting your state’s
Legislative Action Committee.

The Community Association Governance Guidelines are offered by CAI’s Center for Community Association Volunteers (CCAV) to help board members and other community leaders create and sustain more effective, harmonious communities. This initiative supports CAI’s mission of making community associations better—even preferred—places to call home.

Fair Housing Accomodations

Lawyers, board members, association managers and involved unit owners ought to take some time to access and read this "Joint Statement of the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Department of Justice." The document provides guidance on reasonable accomodations under the Fair Housing Act.

"Playing With Fire..."

An article that I just wrote with that title, dealing with avoiding lawsuits, has just been published in the September/October issue of Common Ground magazine. Members of CAI can read the article here. Nonmembers of CAI can join here. Or, you can get a subscription to Common Ground here.

Then again, if you'd rather hear about how to avoid lawsuits, you can keep an eye out for courses at our Community Learning Center, where we'll cover this material, and more, over the next several months.

Mark Your Calendar...

for the Utah Chapter of CAI's 2008 Trade Show.

Hobbs & Olson and utahcondolaw.com are both proud sponsors, and I will be discussing environmental issues, and participating on the legal panel.

Admission is free for chapter members, and there will be prizes!

It's less than 90 miles from Evanston, and only 280 miles from Jackson Hole!

For more details, visit the Utah Chapter website.

A Bit About This Site

This site is a sister site to two other blogs, www.idahocondolaw.blogspot.com and www.utahcondolaw.blogspot.com. It is sponsored by the Salt Lake City based firm of Hobbs & Olson, L.C., which has lawyers who are licensed and practicing in Utah,Idaho and Wyoming.

The Utahcondolaw site will probably be the most frequently updated, but I'll try to keep you abreast of major developments in all three states, in each state's respective blog.

A Wildlife Community

The National Wildlife Foundation has a program through which communities can create, and then receive recognition as, a certified Community Wildlife Habitat.

Here's how they describe a Community Wildlife Habitat:

A Community Wildlife Habitat is a community that provides habitat for wildlife throughout the community--in individual backyards, on school grounds and in public areas such as parks, community gardens, places of worship and businesses. It is a place where the residents make it a priority to provide habitat for wildlife by providing the four basic elements that all wildlife need: food, water, cover and places to raise young. The community also educates its residents about sustainable gardening practices such as reducing or eliminating chemical fertilizers and pesticides, conserving water, planting native plants, removing invasive plants and composting. It hosts workshops about gardening for wildlife, and holds community events such as stream or trail cleanups to make the community healthier for wildlife and people alike. A Community Wildlife Habitat project creates a place where people, flora and fauna can all flourish.

Participants in the program must earn a certain number of points, depending upon their size; thereafter, there are required post-certification goals.