Need help! New president trying to kick me out of the Board

If you are a duly elected Board member then the only way you can be removed from the Board is by a recall vote of the homeowners. Now if he gets enough votes from your fellow Board members he can remove you from the position of treasurer just as he can be removed from the position of president. At the next Board meeting when you give the treasures report, mention that there are unfounded rumors going around about the state of the Associations finances and you would like the Board to hire an audit of the HOA's books to put the scurrilous rumors to rest.

After reading the previous post, I decided I simply HAD to post a narrative of MY previous experience.

Several years I ago my dad and I jointly purchased my condo. For tax reasons, we put it in HIS name. At the time of purchase I never in my wildest imagination thought I would EVER want to serve on the board of directors so the thought never occurred to me. However, over the next few years, I became aware of the fact that we had a "strong arm" BOD who were only interested in doing what THEY wanted to do. To make matters worse, of the 76 units in our complex, three of the board members owned 23 units between them! (Our complex was once apartments and when they were "converted" to condos they original owner sold them off fast at "firesale prices"). So you can see how difficult it is for someone "new" to run for the board because they have "23 votes" between them the moment you walk in the door of the annual meetings. I understand there is "potentially" enough votes to beat them, but you ALL also know how HARD it is to get people TO the annual meeting much less mobilize them against something like this! (We also have a majority of our complex that is "investor owned" and most are simply content to "get their rent check every month" and not get involved"!

Anyway, at one point there were two spots on the board (outside of the President and his 2 "yes men") that came up for re-election. I spoke with an attorney friend of mine because my dad was then in the early stages of Alzheimers and I had "Power of attorney" for him with my sister (who lives out of state). She said she didn't have ANY problems with me running for the position because 1) The unit was originally bought WITH my father FOR me and 2) I paid the mortgage every month. So armed with my "Power of Attorney" I submitted a "resume" for my candidacy (which is sent to residents) and at the annual meeting I was "duly elected" to be on the board.

My first board meeting there were several "issues" voted on that I disagreed with and expressed my opposition to them for what I felt were concerns that were NOT in the best interest of our association. I was "voted down" on these matters, but I was at least "documented" in our minutes (in a 4-1 vote) that I was opposed. The following meeting, the President stated that one of our "residents" had expressed a "concern" about my the "legitimacy" of my "Power of Attorney". (You have to be an "owner" to run for the board). So they requested that I provide a "copy" of my POA to them so they could "allay the resident's concerns". (That is "bull$$$T"! They never had an actual complaint). They just used that a "ruse" against me. I asked why they didn't check my POA BEFORE I ran? They couldn't give a good answer. To make a long story short......their attorney "allegedly" examined my POA and saw that it was a "joint power of attorney". It said that my father authorized Me AND my sister to act in his behalf in whatever way we deemed prudent. The attorney said it SHOULD have said ME AND/OR my sister. Not doing so meant that I couldn't legitimately run for the board without my SISTER's approval! So without contacting me about their concerns they send a letter out to residents stating that I had a "legitimacy problem" in serving and they would have to have a special election to replace me. I was STUNNED! I had no way of disseminating the TRUTH out to residents because THEY had the "mailing list". Our By-Laws state that you can only remove a "director" with a vote of 75% of our membership. But our membership as a whole have no CLUE what our By-Laws state. They ASSUME that the Board is simply "doing their job". All that honestly had to happen was that I had to get my sister to write a 1 page letter "authorizing" her "permission" to act on HER behalf in this matter!

The only "recourse" I would have technically had was to file a "civil suit" which at the time I couldn't afford to do NOR did I have the "time" to deal with a lawsuit. Ironically, the board's side would have been funded by me and the rest of the HOA.

Since that time, my dad has passed and now I am a LEGITIMATE owner of my unit! But I guess what rankles me MOST is that these guys could do what they "damn well pleased" without ANY legal accountability. I don't think I am alone on this type of "abuse" of HOA By-Laws. I am in South Carolina. But does anyone know if there isn't something that can be done to protect/defend consumer interests like mine from this wanton abuse? (Maybe even the State Attorney General's office?) Seems that one of the BIGGEST problems is that MOST of the attorneys that work with HOA's have NO CLUE about the in's and outs of HOA law! Most of them are simply "real estate attorneys" who are "hired guns" to "send collection notices" or occasionally send out "legal looking, strong arm letters" regarding resident "violations" of the By-Laws!

Stan

You were not the owner. If the Bylaws say owners only then you did not qualify to be on the BOD.

Bye bye Stan.

Allegemine,
Why does the former pres. refer to a "committee" in the email to the PM??? What is this committee??? And while it's usually true, depending on your bylaws, that the prez "supervises" Committees, the Committee itself votes and the majority wins.

Glen and John46 are right about the ways you can be removed from the board versus the way you can be removed from the office of treasurer.

Why did the Board appoint the president? If the majority of your board (total is 5?) is on your side, why don't you directors just vote the president out of his office??? It seems like it's time for you to read your HOA's bylaws.

Anyway, the president should not have voted on the floor issue because it's a conflict of interest--it only benefits him. The rest of the Board should have asked him to recuse himself (not vote).

As for the rumors, do try to get support from other owners. If worse comes to worse and the president's lies are provable, and the owners do vote you off the Board, you can sue the prez for defamation of character--both libel and slander, it sounds like. But You probably don't want to take such action.

Hi Michelle, While it's true that Roberts' Rules of Order discusses the president not voting so as to remain impartial, small boards (12 or fewer) usually do permit the president to vote. I don't believe I've seen on this forum cases when the president doesn't vote.

Are you saying that your bylaws prohibit the president from voting except to break or make a tie?? Is your Board really large?

If the president is also a director, that is, a board member, then the president also has the right to vote unless your bylaws specifically state otherwise. It is also possible that you may be in violation of your state's laws regarding corporations by not allowing the president to vote except in certain circumstances.

"If the presiding officer is a member of the assembly or voting body, he has the same voting right as any other voting member." (Robert's Rules, 11th ed., p. 53)

Many people get confused over officers and directors. In most cases, it is a single person holding two positions. Officers have no vote on the board of directors, but all directors are entitled to vote. The president, being a member, is entitled to vote as a director. What the president may not do, is vote twice: once as a member and again as the president in order to break a tie (Robert's Rules, 11th ed., p. 407).

While it is customary, in order to preserve the appearance of impartiality, for the chair (president) to vote last (or not vote at all unless the vote would affect the outcome), there is no legal requirement that he/she do so.

You cannot deny any board member (including the president) the same rights to which all other members of the assembly (board) are entitled. Namely, the right to attend meetings, make motions and nominations, participate in debate, and vote.

Mike, please read some of the earlier replies from Glen & John46; they are correct. Homeowners generally do NOT vote for nor recall officers.

That's news to us. We just went through this process and I've seen this occur in two other communities in Virginia with the same scenario. . Our docs are very specific about the subject and the members definately vote to recall the board member. If the board members get to vote out one of the other board members, I can just imagine what the politics here.

Mike, please read Glen's John46's and especially Bruce's replies. Homeowners can indeed recall directors (if they elected the director in the first place).

As Bruce notes, if the homeowners successfully vote to recall a director, who also is an officer, that recalled director certainly no longer is an officer. In rare cases, the Board might reappoint the person to that vacant office (if the bylaws permit a non director to serve in that particular office), but to do so when h'owners clearly don't want the person to serve the HOA doesn't seem wise.