Missing Minutes????

Started by KarenC4 • 8 replies • 1276 views

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KarenC4 (Connecticut)
Posts: 3

Posted:

Hi,

The former secretary stated that she lost our November 2006 Annual minutes in "cyber space". Now she has not handed in the November 2007 annual minutes and has not attended the last five meetings.

I have sent her a certified letter, (after sending numerous emails) requesting the mintues. This way I have a document to prove that not only did I not lose the minutes but I tried to retrieve them.

What else can I do?

Thanks,
Karen

GeraldT4
Posts: 1,022

Posted:

KarenC4 - Does anyone else have a copy of the 2006 minutes? I suggest you discuss amongst the other Board members in a meeting, and make a motion to relieve the Secretary of her officer duties. Who else was taking the minutes in the Secretary's absence from the last 4 meetings?

DonnaS (Tennessee)
Posts: 5,671

Posted:

Karen,
Yes it would be nice to have the 2006 minutes but those are no longer that important but the 2007 ones are. She definitely did not do what her position on the Board required of her. IMHO, she would be releived immediately for gross negligence as minutes are an official document of the association. Someone must have a copy, perhaps her notes?

KarenC4 (Connecticut)
Posts: 3

Posted:

Thanks for your responses and advice, the former secretary took all her notes on her laptop - which is difficult to understand why she just can't email them. Before I was elected secretary, another board member took the monthly minutes. Not only did I send out a letter, but I was just informed that the Board President sent her a letter as well asking her to resign. If need be, we can definately vote her off.

Thanks,
Karen

RogerB (Colorado)
Posts: 5,067

Posted:

Karen, I suggest the Board remove this Director from the position of Secretary. Usually the Board may not remove her from the Board but can replace any officer. Next reconstruct the minutes to the extent possible and have them approved by the Board.

SusanW1 (Michigan)
Posts: 5,202

Posted:

ANYONE can take minutes; you can even hire someone from the outside to do it. The Secretary's job is to make sure that task is done and that minutes are provided for each meeting. The Secretary also safeguards all the official papers of the corporaton, so you need to get those ASAP.

Why haven't there been hard copies of the minutes given each Board member?

Surely, you can re-construct the missing minutes somehow.

BrianB (California)
Posts: 2,820

Posted:

i am not an expert on RRoO, but i believe the group could meet, and try to reconstruct the minutes from memory. Copy them, and then in a meeting read them as minutes, annotate that they are reconstructed from memory, and then vote to accept (or reject) them as official minutes of the meeting. If accepted, then they do become the official minutes, because the board agreed that they were.

RobertR1 (South Carolina)
Posts: 5,164

Posted:

Brian,
I think you are right about reconstructing the minutes.

Also, the Secretary is usually named as the person that would be the authority in case a legal notice or summons is served.

I also agree with Roger, the Board can not vote an officer off. They can, follow the documents and have a re-call, and the Owners can vote her/him off for all kinds of stuff. Also recently Dr. Gloria brought up that some obtuse actions by a Board Member could void the Board insurance.

TracyT (Maryland)
Posts: 228

Posted:

Also, check your by-laws (or other governing docs.). Ours says that if a board member misses 3 consecutive meetings, the remaining officers will declare the position vacant and appoint some one else to serve the rest of the term.

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