"Workshop" or a "meeting" of the board

Hello Everyone,

I am sure this topic has come up before and believe I already know the answer but want to hear what others have to say. Is a "workshop" a meeting of the board if a quorum of the board is attained? And must the meeting be properly noticed to the membership, with the right to speak? Our POA recently had elections in which three members were duly elected but the two remaining Directors (husband and wife) were appointed just a few weeks prior. (a calculated move by the outgoing President) This new board President has decided to schedule a "workshop" but will not allow any members the right to speak on the matters discussed. This to me is a clear violation of FL 720.303.2 (b) which states in part "Members have the right to attend all meetings of the board. The right to attend such meetings includes the right to speak at such meetings with reference to all designated items." There is at least one new member of the board who agrees with this, and has already had an email "argument" with the board President on this. I know if anyone who wishes to attend and try to speak up, they would be told "No comments aloud" Thanks.

The workshop is for the board to "exchange ideas" on future operations of our association and the "outlook" for the community (whatever this means).This is most definitely nothing to do with any kind of board education courses etc.

Sounds like it to me, too.

Georges21 our bylaws do not have any provision prohibiting this and as you know FL720 has no restriction either. At the very least it should be a conflict of interest. As I stated earlier, this move (appointment) of the outgoing President was a calculated and unilateral move to keep "control"

There are in fact neighbors trying to band together and hold them accountable. As for me a past Board President, I have been the lone person speaking up about the boards actions. There is strength in numbers, something there isn't much of right now. I have reached out to one board member(members are told only contact the President) and that board member agrees with the right to speak provision and the workshop actually being a meeting. The biggest hurdle is that there is no enforcable provisions in the statute holding board members or a board as a whole sccountable for violating state law. I have an up hill battle, and there is such minimal engagement with membership, a recall would certainly fail. At least all the comments have pointed to the fact this is a meeting regardless of it being called a workshop, so I thank you all.

EdC5 had got this. If a quorum of directors meets to discuss association business then it's a Board Meeting that must conform to all the requirements associated with such. It doesn't matter if it's called a "Workshop", a "Forum", or anything else. It is a Meeting of the Board of Directors and it must be noticed at least 48 hours ahead of time, it must be open to the homeowners, and homeowners have a right to speak at it.

Unless it's a meeting with the association attorney to discuss litigation where attorney-client privilege applies or to discuss personnel issues, then it's not relevant what the stated or actual purpose of the meeting is.

AnthonyS5, and there you have the big problem in a nutshell. The statutes are relatively toothless. We had the same thing with an illegal board meeting called by a new president a couple of years ago. The board didn't vote or make any decisions at that meeting, but the president certainly wanted to drive the agenda for her own purposes on a controversial issue and didn't want to hear any pesky homeowners object. A clear violation of both the letter and the spirit of FS 720.

Word leaked out about the meeting, some homeowners were outraged, some didn't care, and the president ultimately was hoisted on her own petard after a few other legally questionable actions. She and her husband sold their home and moved out under cover of darkness less than 6 months later.

The only recourse of the homeowners would have been to sue for an injunction (I'm guessing; I'm not a lawyer) to compel the board to follow Chapter 720 of the Florida Statutes. A slap on the wrist, to be sure, but the homeowners suing, had they prevailed, would have gotten the HOA to pay for their legal costs. While normally those expenses (own lawyer's fees + the opposing party's legal fees) would be shared by all of the homeowners in the HOA, Florida exempts the prevailing homeowners from having to pay any share of the HOA's legal fees.

The end result would have been, hopefully, that future boards and board members would be admonished and on notice that if they don't follow the law then there will be consequences. The state statutes should do a LOT more in that regard. Homeowners shouldn't have to pay for expensive attorneys to mount a lawsuit in order to get their board members to fly straight.

There are no state or federal legislators or departments or District Attorneys, or the Attorney General, or personnel at the state Division of Business and Professional Responsibility (DBPR) who will take any action whatsoever against a board or a director, even if they blatantly violate the statutes. You may get a prosecutor to take an interest if there is theft or embezzlement at play, but that's about it.

It's far easier and less expensive to campaign to vote the bums out, or even recall them, than it is to sue. The arrangement that exists today is insufficient to protect homeowners. The framework of laws regarding HOAs and condos in Florida isn't a complete shambles, but in the end it doesn't matter because the laws have no teeth.

I agree with those who say it certainly will be a "meeting of the Board," thus Owners must be permitted to speak as in FL (and CA too). The board here was doing something similar by placing items in executive session that should have been in open meeting for Owners to see and here. A lot of it is about a very expensive project the Board majority wants to do.

It got so bad that I did not seek reelection a year ago after a dozen years of board service. Once off the board, my spouse and I found other Owners who'd were concerned too. We banded together and started sending out emails to all (200+) owners or placed flyers under doors if we didn't have email info, or mailed flyers via USPS for the 25% here who are absentee owners. It was basically an educational campaign. It was a LOT of work.

Our election at the end of Oct. saw the three incumbents who sought reelection (board of 7, one never attends) solidly defeated by two new candidates and me. We'll have our first board meeting on 11/26. Our new President already wrote a President's Message in the Nov. News committing to openess and transparency.

Sounds like your election was recent, Anthony, but you and others can unify now and get started for your next election. Get as any to attend meetings as possible. I agree that a recall campaign sounds like too much detail, etc., to appeal to any owners. How many homes or units are there?

Meantime, before this "workshop," write a letter to the Board signed by as many Owners as possible expressing your disagreement and citing the proper FL code. Politely ask that a time be set aside for Owners to speak. Ask that you request be placed at the beginning of the "workshop's" agenda and that the board vote on it.