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Louisiana - HOA Attorney misinterpreting the law and taking Homeowners rights away, in my opinion. I'd like someone elses opinion.

Started by SandraM15 • 0 replies • 4 views

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SandraM15 (Louisiana)
Posts: 1
Posted:
Louisiana HOA established before Jan 1, 2025 (20yrs), still controlled by developer. (630+homes)Our HOA atty. finally sent his clarity about the board's failure to notify owners of board meetings: "Homeowners are not entitled to notice". He acknowledges that La. R.S. 9:1141.26(B)(5) generally requires 30 days' notice to directors AND lot owners. However, he claims R.S. 9:1141.3(A) preserves the superiority of our pre-2025 gov docs, while subsec(G) says existing HOAs need not amend them. The PCA fills gaps only when gov. docs are silent and he states ours are not silent, citing cases that predate the 2025 Act. Cooper v. Brisco, Childers v. Laurel Lakes, and Southern Trace v. Williams. Our Declaration §17.3 and Bylaws Article II §5 provide notice to owners for community meetings. Declaration §17.4 and Bylaws Article III §§7–8 require three business days' notice to directors for board mtgs (but say nothing about notifying owners for board mtgs). He argues: the doc specifies owners as the persons entitled to notice for community mtgs & directors as the persons entitled to notice for board mtgs, therefore, its not silent + overrides the 2025 law. He also cites R.S. 12:224(E)(6), stating nonprofit board meeting notice follows the bylaws. I believe his interpretation is not legally sound & is taking away homeowners' rights. Our bylaws never say ONLY directors may receive notice or prohibit notice to owners (even though he added ONLY to his opinion letter to the HOA board which uses this opinion). Can a pre-2025 bylaw requiring notice to directors for board meetings, but not addressing notice to homeowners, override the explicit 30-day homeowner-notice requirement? He won't answer what exactly in gov docs “provides for” the procedure of notifying lot-owners of board mtgs? Plus, why a provision establishing the notice that must be given to directors is also considered a provision establishing that lot owners receive no notice at all, when the gov docs never expressly address board-mtg notice to lot owners.
I believe: we don't have to amend anything. Does a bylaw prescribing notice to directors also constitute a provision governing notice to lot owners, even though lot-owner notice is never mentioned? Does a bylaw requiring notice to directors implicitly exclude notice to lot owners, or does R.S. 9:1141.20(H) allow the LPCA to supply the omitted lot-owner notice procedure? Does R.S. 12:224(E)(6) govern only the corporate notice procedure, or does it also displace the lot-owner protections under R.S. 9:1141.26(B)(5)?


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