Document Request (Invoices for Legal Fees)

I think I would make a call to the attorney who produced them and get his professional legal opinion on the matter.

Almost every document we get, including email, from our attorney has a sort of disclaimer regarding privilege of information. He should be the best person to determine who has access to that "privilege."

RebeccaM1: Is this recap correct?
1. 'Some Directors' have incurred attorney fees w/o Board approval.
2. Owners are requesting a detailed report of legal fees 2007 w/inv. copies.
3. Board not forthcoming w/records of legal action taken.
4. Poster (Rebecca) is Property Mgr.

To shed more light on this situation, why did "some Directors" go outside what the Exec. Board voted (not to go to the attorney)? And do they expect the attorney fee to be funded when they have acted on their own?
If you provide further details, we can offer better advice.

Joe: Point taken. We aren't talking very much copying to be honest, and that homeowner is fine with a reasonable cost for such.

Paul: Your recap is correct. The Board President contacted the Attorney, first, for an opinion concerning a dispute amongst the Board regarding minutes (how they are approved, published, what they should say etc), after they approached me and she disagreed with how I had advised them. She later contacted the Attorney to inquire about Proxies voting. The rest of the Board and I only found out about that one when the bill came. She contacted the Attorney a third time to have them write a demand letter to an owner that wasn't paying the 10% service fee to the Association for a guest she claimed they were renting to.
The rest of the Board has done nothing about any of it until now, a month before the election. The two members of the Board that want the President out have apparently made some owners aware of the legal bills and hence, the document requests.

Roger: I understand what you are saying about the financial part of it. Certainly, they are entitled to know about every penny spent. It is my job to provide that information should they request it. The fact that I know why and how they plan to use it is of no consequence to me. As they say, "I don't have a dog in that fight". I just want to make sure I don't do anything wrong regarding the law and 720. I fully intend to provide a transaction detail form Quickbooks for legal expenses and a description for what each item is. I am just wary of providing the actual invoices, as there is still pending litigation that I feel needs to be sealed until it is over.

I am trying very hard not to do anything to affect this election in any way. I don't want to be used by one side or the other. As is only natural, I of course have personal opinions about how this Association has been/ is being run. In the end though, it is my strong respect for the democratic process that drew me to this industry in the first place and I am determined to let the owners do what they will regarding the governing of their community.

Geesh, there is really not enough space here for me to tell you all how deep this community's problems go. I just need a very simple by the book way to handle this request. I think I have gotten that from you all. I will provide the figures the owner is looking for and a generic description for each. I will advise the owner to request further information from the Board. The only problem with that will be that the Board President refuses to hold any more meetings until the election.

I went 'round and 'round with our board and management agent when I requested to review the invoices from the board's attorney. After much debate I was finally provided heavily redacted invoices (all mention of subjects discussed in phone calls or meetings and all names were blacked out). This did provide the information I needed to compare actual legal fees to the budget and to the monthly financial reports. It was an acceptable compromise.

Dave

I agree with Roger and others on this post. I also want to note that in David's case above, the redacted invoices were appropriate, if and only if, they contained descriptions of services which identified parties (owner with lien, foreclosure) or something that is "personnel" or legal related (pending lawsuits, actions taking of a sensitive nature).

Although it was not mentioned/addressed, I would also expect the President to have some lateral access to the HOA attorney in an advisory role, which would not require the full board's approvals. I would also expect that upon doing so, that the President forward the matter to the full board for their information.

RebeccaM1: IMO, your sensitivity to this issue is important and the Board should see it as such. You are, after all, contracted by the Board; however, you do not want to jeopardize your integrity or professionalism by revealing documents or info from them which should be kept confidential. If the Board wants to override your caution and counsel, then that's on them.
You must maintain your credibility.

Rebecca,
Tough spot for you to be in and it may just be that this Board don't deserve you. For a manager to even consider the potential of the community speaks volumes. I am still a believer in some folks having enough sense to see the forest in spite of the trees. The longer I mess with what goes on in HOA and Condo's, the more I am convinced that the whole self management system needs an overhaul, starting at the top of the State level. Both entities (Condos and HOA) seem to spend considerable time fixing what is wrong internally, and many don't have the tools or drive to try to sort things out, and when the poor soul wants to contribute, they find such a self induced mish-mash in their governance, they quickly back off. Good luck to you!