Libel law suit

So, as I posted before, we have new neighbors (husband - Mr.H and wife - Mrs.W) who decided to take action against my husband (he is serving as the President of HOA BOD). First, we've got a letter with a list of complaints and a demand to take action (from Mr.H), 2 days later every Board member (excluding my husband) got a 6-page EXTREMELY harsh letter (that's what some of BOD told me before I read it) from Mrs.W. She gave me verbal permission to read it... WOW! That letter was harsh! VERY!
Our BOD (excluding my husband) decided to go ahead and answer every complaint from this couple and a meeting was scheduled to next Tuesday. Then, my husband (exclusively) gets e-mail from Mr.H who says that he did not really understood the meaning of a special meeting and he will not be present, thank you but NO! Mr.H mentioned that my husband has his permission to pass the letter to the rest of BOD since he has "a full day of routines to
accomplish" and can't do it himself... really???
After my husband forwarded Mr.H's e-mail to the BOD, some of BOD were very upset and thought that we need to seek a legal advice and possibly start a Libel law suit. Please, give me advice what to do... Has anybody been involved in this kind of suit? What is it? I would appreciate your help.
From the first letter we had until June, 30. After 6-page letter we had until the BOD reaches quorum, now I believe she will be going "door-to-door" this weekend and passing false information... SO sad!

Here is some information I found when reseasching this in the past...

" If you feel that you've been a victim of libel or slander, you might try to seek compensation for damages in a civil lawsuit. To be honest, most lawsuits for defamation of character never yield positive results, but if you have enough proof to win your claim, you could have a solid case. Before you file a civil lawsuit for libel or slander, you'll need to prove it, so here are a few tips to get you started.
Prove the Statement was False

In order to win a civil lawsuit for libel or slander, you will need to be able to prove that the statement (either written or spoken) was false. In other words, you have to demonstrate in court that the statement has no element of truth. This can be far more difficult than you would imagine, so it's important that you pay attention to this point.

For example, let's say that a restaurant critic wrote that the food at your establishment was made from cat meat rather than chicken. Obviously, this is a case of libel if you don't, in fact, use cat meat to make your food, but you have to prove that there isn't any cat in the dishes your restaurant serves. This is easy enough - hire an expert witness to test the meat in your restaurant and to testify that it is chicken rather than cat.

Prove the Statement was Made to Others:

You can't file a civil lawsuit against an individual for slandering you to your face if no one else is around to hear it. The basis of a defamation of character claim is the supposition that the statement caused damage to your reputation, which isn't the case if no one else was privy to the statement. You must be able to demonstrate that someone else heard or read it to win.

In some cases, this will be easy enough to prove, especially in the event of libel. If the aforementioned restaurant critic published his review in the New York Times, it is safe to assume that hundreds of thousands of people read it. However, if the review never made it to the paper, you'll have a hard time winning your case.

Prove the Statement Caused You Harm:

The next facet you'll need to cover in your civil lawsuit is harm. In order to prove libel or slander, you must be able to demonstrate beyond a reasonable doubt that the written or spoken statement damaged your reputation. For example, if the critic published his defamatory review, you could use the fact that sales decreased 40% over the next week as proof of harm.

Contrary to popular opinion, however, the harm must be more than circumstantial. Losing a job or customers, being assaulted on the street, receiving hate mail from angry readers or getting demoted at work are all examples of harm, which can definitely help to prove libel or slander. "

Jay,

The bar is much higher for defamation suits brought by elected officials and their employees. In the early 1960's the US Supreme Court held in New York Times Co. v. Sullivan that such a person must prove not only that the statement was false, but that the speaker or writer knew it was false, that the statements were defamatory, and that the statement were made with a malicious intent.

I first became aware of this case years ago when I found it cited in a state supreme court opinion. In the state case, the "elected official" was a member of the student senate at the University of Arizona and the defendant was the campus daily newspaper. The newspaper won on appeal.

I mention this state case to point out that the term "elected official" covers a broad spectrum. I am unaware of any opinions applying the New York Times case to directors of an HOA, but if a student senator is an elected official in the eyes of the law then I would think that those who run for office in their associations would also be considered elected officials.

The New York Times case set the bar so high that few elected officials or their employees can prevail, so few lawsuits are filed anymore by those people.

It wasn't me asking, it was Natalya.

I did'nt recall that she said she was a public official.

Your equating an HOA president to an elected official? Talk about making a mountain out of a mole hill.

Mr.H's letter is completely against my husband, Mrs.W letter is mixed - my husband and the Board. She asked if my name was on the title and since it's not - she was attacking only my husband. She is insisting to remove him from the Board ASAP. Mr.H mentioned in his last e-mail that "all the members (of the Board) ... are very bias and extremely close minded".
Well, it was one of the Board members that felt that it was inappropriate for Mr.H (since Mr.H IS a Board member) to deal with the issue this way...
Most of the BOD members want to vote Mr.H out, since he is not cooperating and has his own agenda. But our by-Laws provide only one way to remove him - to have a special meeting and cast a vote. Not a single BOD member wants to do that... So, here we go - we are stuck :/

Nat

Was this fellow elected to the BOD or appointed? The removal process might be different. Check it out.

A letter about a board director or directors that is for the board and only given to the board is privileged. As it went no further than the board in theory, then there is no libel. Libel has to be made public as in meaning to the general membership. There are other elements of libel that also have to be met. You must separate libel from opinion as well.

If there is a matter dealing with a board member, then that board member should recuse himself or herself to avoid a conflict of interests.

There are other means for calling for a special meeting, as in a certain percentage of the membership petitioning for it. If this is not the case, and no one else is willing to step forward, then the board will have to deal with Mr. H.

If this person was elected, then someone must have supported his agenda.

Natalya's husband has been in EXTREME violation of bylaws and covenants for past 5 years, 3 years since the violations were recorded with the Probate Judge. Without board approval, without city building permits, without a licensed contractor her husband had a contractor cut trusses in the roof of their small condo to install 3 GIANT motorized skylights. The board at that time attempted to rectify the situation and the owners refused to cooperate. HOA's attorney filed a quasi-lien against owners and all future owners to force compliance. 2010 Board (after losing business minded members that were pressing the matter) purposely and intentionally dropped the ball because they "didn't like conflict". 2011 her husband, the bylaws/covenants violator, charmed proxy votes from a complacent group of owners and injected himself into the board of all new board members (except one wuss old member who loves to keep her head in the sand) and charmed them all into voting him President, a role he still holds. BTW, the President and wife are also periodic late payers of monthy dues/assessments (sometimes to the point of liens filed) so they have an extremely vested interest in lowering late fees and in keeping the board in the dark to their violations. Theres way more to the story than can be told here but suffice it to say this small condo community is suffering from a board that has its individual and collective "heads in the sand". If its not resolved, there will likely be a recall vote of the entire board to kick them all out and elect a new board. Also, the board decided to hear the new owner's complaints in a special meeting...the new owner did not call a meeting.

Libel...one commenter mentioned that there had to be no truth to the accusations. There is an extreme amount of documented proof that the covenants and bylaws were violated. No owner of a condo in this development owns the roof and trusses (among other elements of the building). He knew that and yet proceeded to put in 3 very heavy skylights that required the cutting of trusses and has had to arrogance to ignore the Board and the city building inspectors for 3 years. And the chutzpah to then get him elected to the board to continue to non-compliance and to lower late fees for his own financial gain.

Would you want this guy on your HOA board?

Let me introduce BamaJ who is also known as Mr.H.

BamaJ has posted this same info in another thread.

Please keep personality conflicts off this site.

If you want to discuss the issues - Great.
If you are looking for different perspectives - Great.
If you are looking to cause someone pain and suffering by taking the issue out of the Association and into the internet - open a facebook page.

Well then you only know one side of the story and probably it makes you happy and satisfied and you don't really need to know the facts. You don't have any right to attack me or my husband. But it's you that have to cope with your conscience, not me.

All

Nat came out here with her side of s story but now it seems someone else comes out with another side of the story.

When one post on the Internet, nothing is private, they are posting to the public and if they get a response so be it.

So far I see no personal attacks like your are fat and smell. What I have seen are some clarifications and disputes.

Let the two sides publically, professionally discusss it. If it get personal, then kill it.

If one cannot stand the heat in the kitchen, one should get out of the kitchen.

Thank you John. That's exactly what it is...both sides of the story.

Most people dont realize that you can sue for libel in small claims court. I sued a board member last week and won my case. While I agree, it is a hard case to prove, people do win - I did! Libel is the written form of defamation. Libel is the only form of defamation that you do NOT have to prove damages. The judge will decide based upon the severity of the case. In small claims however, there is a maximum and I got the max!

Bama, why so defensive man? Irene didn't side with your arch enemy Natalya, she simply stated what happened to HER, she brought a libel case in small claims in the state she lives in and won. While I guess I can understand you interpreting from her post that she filed suit last week, most reasonable persons would interpret her to mean she went to court last week and won.

I see, then "Most people" must have been code for Natalya.

Oh, I don't know. How about general information for the forum including the majority of the people who come here seeking information but never post?

Paranoia - Definition

Paranoia is an unfounded or exaggerated distrust of others, sometimes reaching delusional proportions. Paranoid individuals constantly suspect the motives of those around them, and believe that certain individuals, or people in general, are "out to get them."

That definition of paranoia surely must be for Natty... LOL

tee hee hee

Melissa your crass humor is showing. I've got more education than you will ever hope to have. Bless your heart.

Sorry, let me clarify. I filed the suit over a month ago and the case was two weeks ago. The judge gave a verdict immediately which I wasnt expecting. You are correct about it not being libel if it is true. In my case, the board member used the homeowner email list to state that I was KKK, Sadam, demonic and mentally ill. It wasnt hard for me to prove that I am none of the above, so I won. The judge did ask why I didnt file a civil suit, but at the end of the day, that would have been drawn out and the attorneys' would have taken the money. I just wanted the harassment to stop more than anything. It wasnt about money. In the judgement, we asked that the money be paid to the wounded warrior project. It has been almost two weeks and the libel has stopped, even though the statements can still be found online.

Yep...Let's bring the post all back to you BamaJ...It is ALL about you and anything else is just trying to tear you down...Tired of the selfishness and cluelessness...Done.

Yep sure have been...something you got right for once. Go figure...