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Suzanne M. Leff

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Suzanne Leff is the managing partner at WLPP Law, where she provides general counsel to community associations and focuses on general business representation, document drafting and interpretation, contract review, covenant enforcement, and governance practices.

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As legal counsel for community associations, we assist our clients with the various types of conflict that arise in the course of association business activities.  We understand that conflict can sometimes escalate to a level that requires court intervention.  We also know that certain preventative steps can help to alleviate the time, expense, and emotional drain that come with litigation.  In particular, good contract drafting can help to minimize the impact of disputes between associations and their contractors.  We encourage our clients to seek legal advice when entering into contracts for management services, landscape maintenance, capital improvements, and any other project or service that involves a relationship with an independent contractor.  The following reminders come directly from our experience advising community associations:

 

A bid or proposal form, while legally binding, is not a good contract.  While signing a bid or proposal form may bind the association to pay for services performed by the contractor, the association does not receive any protections as part of the bargain.  We recommend contracts that contain specific provisions which, at the very least, address the scope of work, insurance coverage, payment terms, remedies for default or breach, and attorney fees for the prevailing party in any dispute that may arise under the contract terms.  Bid forms do not typically include these recommended contract terms.

 Continue Reading Contracting with Association Contractors: An Ounce of Prevention

Most covenant-controlled communities have at least one owner that does not play by the rules. The mere mention of covenants may conjure an image of that purple house, untended lawn, or RV owner in your own neighborhood – that house that becomes a sort of sideshow within the community due to the on-going battle between the association and the owner. On the rare occasion, failure to abide by the covenants results in a dream deferred.
Continue Reading When Covenants Collide with the American Dream

Even though no major elections are scheduled for 2005, as early as mid-September, Coloradoans may see more evidence of ballot issues and party candidates than in recent years. Section 2 of Senate Bill 100 opens the door for homeowners living within community associations to display political signs on their property up to forty-five days before an election and seven days following the day of the election. This new addition to the statutory mandates for community associations allows an association to regulate the size and number of political signs that an owner displays only if a city, town, or county ordinance also regulates political signs on residential property. If an ordinance exists, the association may not create more restrictive policies for its owners concerning political signs. If no ordinance exists, an association can only limit the number of signs that an individual owner places on her property to one sign per office or ballot issue contested in the pending election. But, where no ordinance controls, an owner cannot place signs larger than three feet by four feet on his property. Many Colorado cities, towns, and counties either do not have political sign regulations or have broad regulations that place few restrictions on the number and size of political signs permitted.
Continue Reading Political Landscaping

A homeowner association board of directors has a fiduciary duty to the association and its members. That fiduciary duty requires the board members to act in good faith and for the benefit of the association as a whole. Board members also have a duty of loyalty and a duty to deal impartially with beneficiaries, or members. Board members should remember the role of their fiduciary duty to the association when considering or making requests that affect the individual, private interests of any board member. One Colorado case provides a useful illustration for how boards might handle potential breaches of the fiduciary duty.
Continue Reading The Fiduciary Duty of Board Members: No “Playing Favorites” Allowed