Harrassment and emotional distress

Is it an effective defense? Who knows. Sounds more of a cross complaint then a defense.

Can they sue the board? Only if they can pierce the corporate shield.
If they do, this is what the D&O insurance is for.

Can they sue the Association? Sure. If they have the time and money you can likely sue a ham sandwich.

If you are following the governing documents, not going overboard on notices, etc. You should be have no issue.

Two Options:

1) Tell them that is their right and wait and see.
2) Turn the whole issue over to the attorney, explaining that since they threatened legal action - the Association had no choice but to turn the enforcement over to an attorney. THEN LET THE ATTORNEY HANDLE IT.

Sound advice.

If certain conditions are met, alleging "harassment and IIED (intentional infliction of emotional distress)" could be the basis of a lawsuit. Whence the HOA would hopefully have evidence of: the alleged violation; following an appropriate, lawful procedure; and doing so without exercising selective enforcement.

Some boards are ignorant of how to handle violations. Some boards are stupid and do overstep.

Some owners are ignorant of their obligations under the covenants.

Some soul should try to de-escalate the situation and give the owner an explanation of what covenants are and how the board is required to enforce them, else the board could face a lawsuit from another owner for failing to enforce the covenants.

OP hasn't stated if they have a property manager.

In this kind of situation, always have your property manager deal with this person. Never have any communication with them as board members.

Whether you have this or not, you should let your attorney know.

Most insurance policies require that you notify your carrier about any legal threats. You should do that. They may decline coverage if you don't do it in a timely manner.

This is a common situation so don't worry about it too much. The key thing is to use the property manager or your attorney and to other keep any communication with this owner to a bare minimum.

If it's been over a year, I expect that he is not going to correct the issue.

OR

Has the issue been corrected in the past and then repeated?

If it were me, I would spend $500 and have your attorney send a letter to the individual about the violation (making all the appropriate citations). If this doesn't resolve the issue, it likely won't be resolved without further legal action.

The attorney can use the threatened legal action as a reason to send the letter.

It also should be noted that in small claims court "emotional stress" claims are rarely if ever awarded. Most likely would be tossed out. Plus the HOA can and should file a countersuit for all of it's money it's lost in this issue. You don't need a lawyer to counter-sue.

I looked into the "worst case scenerio" if we ever got seriously sued. We had a million dollar policy with insurance. (If we went that way). It was a $20K deductible. The actual payout after all legal costs paid out from that 1 Million - $80K. If they were awarded more than that the we would had to make up that difference.

So if you keep the "worst case" in your head you know where to begin. Right now a small claims lawsuit? Many states max out at $5K to file. A HOA would have to hire a lawyer to represent them in court or assign someone to do so. (Best to use a lawyer though). Would your HOA if it was 100% WRONG be able to handle this worst case? If your HOA is 100% RIGHT, would it counter-sue for it's expenses?

Suing your HOA is suing yourself and your neighbors. There are cases that are justified. There are cases that it's just a ploy. If you don't know the difference, then get a lawyer...