KellyC6 (Virginia)
Posts: 37
Posts: 37
Posted:
As a Board President, I need legal advice but can't get. I am constrained from consulting our HOA attorney without getting the expense authorized via a vote at an open board meeting. In addition, if I don't have consensus from the board about the subject matter, I can't proceed no matter what.
On my own, I found and met with an attorney who had 23 years experience in Association law and paid out of pocket for an hour of his time, but then when I had follow-up questions he refused to return my calls. I cold-called another reputable attorney (15 years experience in Association law) and he did speak to me over the phone a couple of times for free (even though I offered to pay), but he too ended up "unavailable." I wanted to become a paying client and continue to ask advice, but this second attorney kept referring me back to our HOA attorney.
The problem is I desperately need to talk to an attorney in depth (and I am willing to pay out of my own pocket), but if I mention that I am a board President and there is already an attorney on retainer, I can't get anyone to talk to me.
Who do you go to when you don't trust your HOA attorney and need to double check that what he's telling you is right? If this were illness-related and I didn't trust the first doctor's opinion, I'd just go to a second doctor. What's the problem with doing something like that with an attorney?
P.S. I am not able to give details about the specific situation; it's too complicated and there's no way to describe it without breaking confidentiality -- hence the need to talk to a lawyer I can trust!
On my own, I found and met with an attorney who had 23 years experience in Association law and paid out of pocket for an hour of his time, but then when I had follow-up questions he refused to return my calls. I cold-called another reputable attorney (15 years experience in Association law) and he did speak to me over the phone a couple of times for free (even though I offered to pay), but he too ended up "unavailable." I wanted to become a paying client and continue to ask advice, but this second attorney kept referring me back to our HOA attorney.
The problem is I desperately need to talk to an attorney in depth (and I am willing to pay out of my own pocket), but if I mention that I am a board President and there is already an attorney on retainer, I can't get anyone to talk to me.
Who do you go to when you don't trust your HOA attorney and need to double check that what he's telling you is right? If this were illness-related and I didn't trust the first doctor's opinion, I'd just go to a second doctor. What's the problem with doing something like that with an attorney?
P.S. I am not able to give details about the specific situation; it's too complicated and there's no way to describe it without breaking confidentiality -- hence the need to talk to a lawyer I can trust!