Treasurer uses personal microsoft office 365 to create Financial Reports

We are a small HOA and I used my personal software license to create a spreadsheet as a tool to sort and summarize data to create the reports for the annual meeting.
I just resigned and turned over all the accounting records. The Board is requesting I provide them my excel spreadsheet file. I refused to do so and now the HOA attorney has sent me email demanding I turn over this spreadsheet or legal action will be taken against me. All the previous Treasurers never turned over any personal software files they used to create reports. Some previous Treasurers used excel and some used quicken.
I got nothing when I took over and had to go to the bank statements and create my own data file to be used for reporting.
After a week of harassment by this attorney, I finally forwarded him the emails that I had sent the Board of Directors with two attached excel files that I used for reporting. Once again, I received another demand letter to turn over my excel spreadsheet. Before I seek legal counsel, is this the normal process when a Treasurer resigns?

I may have misunderstood?

You created a spreadsheet to help you do your job as a volunteer - and, as a volunteer you are helping your community.

But, you don't want to share the software-based, formatted data sheet you developed?

A file is a file is a file. Now you can go to the settings of the document in Excel I believe and change the author if it's a privacy thing. Believe it's under File in Office programs your running.

I don't see a problem with giving over an excel file. It's a record of the HOA and thus belongs with the HOA. Just because you used your personal equipment to create it doesn't make it yours. HOA's are mostly voluntary and most volunteers use their own equipment like computers to create records. We would pay back for any ink used to create documents Which means those documents are the HOA's even more if you ever got re-imbursed for creating them.

Your right and it also doesn't explain why at a minimum she won't export the data and give it to them. Sounds like someone has an ax to grind.

I've refused to hand over a couple of spreadsheets I developed for my HOA. The main reason is the very real possibility that whoever gets them will claim credit for them. In a real company, any creative material you come up with is a "work for hire" and your employer can legally claim ownership of it. I don't think that sort of intellectual property claim can be made when someone is a volunteer, unless there's a written understanding agreed to.

Another time I forwarded a spreadsheet to a board member that had something to do with a budget. The board member changed a critical amount in one cell of the spreadsheet that had negative reprecussions on the bottom line. Then he tried to throw me under the bus. "Don't blame me! I got it from Geno!"

Anything I create remains mine and the original stays under my control.

I would print the spreadsheet contents and give them that. I would also open the spreadsheet and export the data into another format and hand that over. Nobody gets my formulas, though. I've fixed too many formulas in spreadsheets I got from other people here than to risk giving someone else my own formulas that might themselves have errors. Not without proper inddemnification at the very least.

Could you give them a read only file that could only be edited by you? I don't use excellent a lot, but I think if you click the totals cell, you'll see the formula pop up so they know where you got the numbers. I would send that to the attorney - if you send it as an attachment, you'll have a time and date stamp to protect yourself if the numbers change, you'll have it off of what you sent and the new board would have to explain how and why the numbers changed and who did it

Legally, the association has no right to the file. If they want the data, recreate it on their dime!

This could be one of the sillier issues I’ve seen in awhile.

I want my HOA to be successful.

While I haven’t been a treasurer, I’ve been prez, VP and secretary. I’ve created quality letterhead, published nice newsletters, built numerous spreadsheets, and built and manage a website, paying for it each year until reimbursed.

In each case, on leaving the positions, I collected all the data, including formats, put the products in a folder structured thumb drive, and/or DVD, and presented it to the incoming pres for them to take formal control, noting this in the minutes.

Why would anyone concerned about their neighbors and community want to withhold anything of utility?

The attorney is only playing the intimidation game. That is hold they operate. Send them the paper file and be done with it.

By the way, most of us aren't lawyers so if you want an answer to a legal question, talk to a lawyer.

It’s the INFORMATION that is required to be turned over, not necessarily your files.

Heck, the new treasurer may want to go back to file cards in a box, who knows.

But be generous. Give her the file. Whether she has the correct program to accept it And make it useable is their issue.

Watch out that you don’t burn bridges; you may have to cross over the river again.