Challenging a motion and do all documents have to be the same?

[Guest Julia]

If a Board makes a  motion and approves it unanimously, can you challenge that vote? How do you go about requesting to be on the agenda and asking a Board to reconsider their motion? 

Also, if a Board's attorney writes a document for homeowners, does that document have to be the same for all homeowners? Can one homeowner question it and ask that the Board to make a change and/or add something to it? The attorney states that this shows possible favoritism, but how does it show that if the Agreement is between an individual homeowner and the Board itself? 

The homeowner is asking for something to be written in to protect them as the homeowner, but the attorney has written the Agreement to only protect the District's Board. It is an Agreement the homeowner is asked to sign to allow the District and the representatives permission to enter their property to remove a fence, but if someone gets hurt on the homeowners property, there is nothing to say they won't be held liable. 

Thank you!

 

[Joshua Katz]

10 minutes ago, Guest Julia said:

If a Board makes a  motion and approves it unanimously, can you challenge that vote? How do you go about requesting to be on the agenda and asking a Board to reconsider their motion? 

 

Who is "you?" If a board member, move to rescind something previously adopted - although it is likely a hard climb if it passed unanimously - you'll want to give notice to reduce the voting threshold. If not a board member, then the question is whether it can be modified by the membership. In general, the board answers to the membership, and so it can, unless the bylaws give the board exclusive authority over the action in question. If the membership can reverse it, simply move to amend the agenda at the membership meeting (or make the motion under New Business).

The remainder of the questions are legal in nature and should be directed to an attorney. As a general matter, though, parties to contracts should not rely on counterparties' attorneys to protect their interests. The job of the board's attorney is to make sure the board is protected. A homeowner seeking to negotiate a contract with the board should seek his own representation.

[Guest Julia]

"You" is a non Board of Director, or member of the Board. A person who attends their meetings - a homeowner. As a homeowner, can I move to amend the agenda when it comes time for them to approve the last Board's minutes? 

Their attorney wrote a Right of Entry Agreement, which we do not feel comfortable with in the wording. It does only show to protect them, but not us as the homeowner. We were asked to write what we thought we wanted to add or change, and as we did, their attorney did not approve it as written. We were told to attend their meeting and when we did, their attorney told the Board of Directors that if there was any changes or additions to the Agreement that they already had approved in November, it would show favoritism, as the same Agreement has been sent to other homeowners who live on our lake. She also said what we wrote was unconstitutional. We were only asking them to put in their Agreement that we be held harmless from any liability if a worker gets hurt while they are on our property, but almost immediately we were shot down and they voted right away to keep their Agreement the same and not agree to make changes or additions.

Their attorney did look at he BOD and say that she worked for them, so we figured right then that she was not going to help our case in anyway. They are now saying that since we won't sign their Right of Entry Agreement, they are going to put up their new fence right next to our old one on their property, so we will now have two fences. 

We live on a lake and our backyard has a wrought iron fence the homebuilder put in, but shortly after we purchased our home, the Mud District purchased the lake and put up their own wrought iron fence around the lake. We do still have our original wrought iron fence the homebuilder put in. After seventeen years, the Mud District has decided to put in a new one, but need us to sign this Agreement to allow their contractors to remove our old wrought iron fence. It probably sounds great, but it's the wording in their Agreement that is just not something we agree with.

Thank you for your reply. I really appreciate it. 

 

[Joshua Katz]

7 minutes ago, Guest Julia said:

"You" is a non Board of Director, or member of the Board. A person who attends their meetings - a homeowner. As a homeowner, can I move to amend the agenda when it comes time for them to approve the last Board's minutes? 

 

No, as a non-member of the board, you cannot make motions of any kind at a board meeting. You can make motions at a homeowner's meeting, though, which, as indicated, may or may not have the power to reverse the board's decision.

9 minutes ago, Guest Julia said:

 Their attorney wrote a Right of Entry Agreement, which we do not feel comfortable with in the wording. It does only show to protect them, but not us as the homeowner. We were asked to write what we thought we wanted to add or change, and as we did, their attorney did not approve it as written. We were told to attend their meeting and when we did, their attorney told the Board of Directors that if there was any changes or additions to the Agreement that they already had approved in November, it would show favoritism, as the same Agreement has been sent to other homeowners who live on our lake. She also said what we wrote was unconstitutional. We were only asking them to put in their Agreement that we be held harmless from any liability if a worker gets hurt while they are on our property, but almost immediately we were shot down and they voted right away to keep their Agreement the same and not agree to make changes or additions.

 Their attorney did look at he BOD and say that she worked for them, so we figured right then that she was not going to help our case in anyway. They are now saying that since we won't sign their Right of Entry Agreement, they are going to put up their new fence right next to our old one on their property, so we will now have two fences. 

 We live on a lake and our backyard has a wrought iron fence the homebuilder put in, but shortly after we purchased our home, the Mud District purchased the lake and put up their own wrought iron fence around the lake. We do still have our original wrought iron fence the homebuilder put in. After seventeen years, the Mud District has decided to put in a new one, but need us to sign this Agreement to allow their contractors to remove our old wrought iron fence. It probably sounds great, but it's the wording in their Agreement that is just not something we agree with.

 

As indicated, this is a legal question, and outside the scope of this forum. Be advised that attorneys represent their clients; the board's attorney represents the board. You need your own attorney if you want someone to represent your interests. 

[Guest Julia]

Thank you so much for replying so quickly and helping me in this matter. 

1 hour ago, Joshua Katz said:

Who is "you?" If a board member, move to rescind something previously adopted - although it is likely a hard climb if it passed unanimously - you'll want to give notice to reduce the voting threshold. If not a board member, then the question is whether it can be modified by the membership. In general, the board answers to the membership, and so it can, unless the bylaws give the board exclusive authority over the action in question. If the membership can reverse it, simply move to amend the agenda at the membership meeting (or make the motion under New Business).

The remainder of the questions are legal in nature and should be directed to an attorney. As a general matter, though, parties to contracts should not rely on counterparties' attorneys to protect their interests. The job of the board's attorney is to make sure the board is protected. A homeowner seeking to negotiate a contract with the board should seek his own representation.