In the July 2012 edition of The New Jersey Cooperator, Ronald L. Perl, Esq., the partner-in-charge of Hill Wallack LLP’s Community Associations Group, was quoted in the article “Cash-Strapped? Getting Residents Behind an Assessment.”
In discussing whether an association can levy a special or emergency assessment, Mr. Perl stated: “[t]here are firm rules about how much a board can spend without resident approval. Sometimes the board’s lawyer may be tasked with finding ways to interpret those documents to meet the need of the particular situation in question. That’s a very dangerous way to do business. If it looks like you’re going to require the vote of the owners, don’t try to fit a square peg in a round hole. Have the vote of owners.”
“And if the vote fails and the board still feels this particular change needs to be made, they can create a legal action, inform the residents that they have done so, present the pertinent information to a judge, and ask the judge to make a ruling that shows that the work must be done. In situations where there is a significant stalemate between the board and residents, seeking a judgment before vendor contracts are signed or financing is taken out to do a job is far more preferable than starting the job and having residents take legal action after everything already in motion.”
You can view the full article here.
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