Challenge of a Vote of the Members

[Guest Linda Gregory]

Can a vote by the members of a Master Association be challenged? If so, what is the correct procedure?

Our Master Association (still under control of the Developer) is haveing a vote upcoming next week-that has been very contentious on whether the MA should purchase the Amenities including the golf course, accept a private 3 year interest only loan from the Developer,etc- There is an ongoing issue with residents' membership status.

The MA will hold a vote by written ballot, including proxies, will collect the votes, tally and announce the result w/i 2 hours.If a Member feels there is a very true likelihood that non-members votes' will have been counted, how can he (or can he) challenge the vote? What is the correct process to do so?

Thank you,

Linda

[hmtcastle]

If a Member feels there is a very true likelihood that non-members votes' will have been counted, how can he (or can he) challenge the vote? What is the correct process to do so?

Raise a point of order. The chair will rule that it is either well taken or not and the ruling can be appealed.

But a better approach is to try prevent the illegitimate votes from being cast in the first place. The old "ounce of prevention".

[Dan Honemann]

Raise a point of order. The chair will rule that it is either well taken or not and the ruling can be appealed.

But a better approach is to try prevent the illegitimate votes from being cast in the first place. The old "ounce of prevention".

Well, it isn't clear that there will be any meeting at which to raise a point of order, nor that it will be of any use if the Association is, indeed, "still under control of the Developer."

[Kim Goldsworthy]

Can a vote by the members of a Master Association be challenged? If so, what is the correct procedure?

Our Master Association (still under control of the Developer) is having a vote upcoming next week-that has been very contentious on whether the MA should purchase the Amenities including the golf course, accept a private 3 year interest only loan from the Developer,etc- There is an ongoing issue with residents' membership status.

The MA will hold a vote by written ballot, including proxies, will collect the votes, tally and announce the result w/i 2 hours.

If a Member feels there is a very true likelihood that non-members votes' will have been counted, how can he (or can he) challenge the vote? What is the correct process to do so?

You won't find the terms "master association" nor "developer" in RONR Tenth Edition 2000.

You won't find the terms "amenities' nor "golf course" nor "loan" in RONR, either.

So far, you are describing something legal in nature, and not parliamentary in nature. - Loans; golf course purchasing. - All this stuff is quite outside a meeting context of motions and voting. I think a lawyer may be needed to tell you about how to treat loans, and how to buy a golf course.

If all this detail is not important, then the way to challenge a vote is to

(a.) raise a point of order in the meeting where the voting is to take place, or

(b.) raise a point of order in the meeting where the results are to be announced.

But, like I said, the parliamentary side of things won't count toward a hill of beans if the body which is meeting does not (yet?) have the authority to conduct its own vote in its own way.

(The controlling entity, the "developer", as you say, might decide otherwise, and leave no recourse for the "master association".)