After extensive testimony in the House Business, Labor, Economic, and Workforce Development Committee this afternoon, the HOA transfer fee bill (HB14-1254) passed out of committee, with no amendments, for consideration by the House of Representatives. The HOA transfer feel bill is sponsored by Rep. Labuda (D-Denver) and Senator Balmer (R-Centennial) and received bipartisan…

House Bill 14-1125 (“HB 1125”), introduced in the House of Representatives by Representative Diane Mitsch Bush (D-Steamboat Springs), has cleared the House with no amendments and was introduced just yesterday in the Senate and assigned to the Senate Local Government Committee. Senator David Balmer (R-Centennial) is the Senate sponsor of the bill. 

As you will recall, HB 1125 permits an association to publish email addresses and telephone numbers of members and residents of the association, if those members or residents first provide written consent to their association to publish this information. Owners and residents may withdraw this written consent, but such withdrawal of consent does not require their association to go back and “change, retrieve or destroy” previously published telephone numbers or email addresses. Also, the bill permits owners and residents to electronically provide or withdraw their consent to their associations.Continue Reading HOA Records Bill Clears Colorado House of Representatives

When we hear the term “burden of proof”, many of us think of the television crime shows we all watch such as Law and Order or CSI, and how we always hear that the prosecution has to prove the defendant’s guilt “beyond a reasonable doubt”.  This “reasonable doubt” standard is the burden of proof in criminal cases.  In general, the burden of proof, or burden of persuasion, is the duty placed upon a party to prove or disprove a disputed fact.  Depending on the case and the arguments, either party can bear this burden. 

In civil cases, however, the burden of proof is a lower standard and only requires that the party who bears the burden prove or disprove a disputed fact by a preponderance of the evidence or by clear and convincing evidence.  Colorado courts define “preponderance of the evidence” as proving that it is more probably true than not, and have defined “clear and convincing evidence”  as proving that it is highly probable and there exists no serious or substantial doubt. It is up to the judge or jury hearing the case to decide whether a party has met its burden.

 Continue Reading Burden of Proof

This afternoon, House Bill 1125 (“HB 1125”) was taken up by the House Business, Labor, Economic & Workforce Development Committee (“House Business Committee”) for consideration. As you will recall, HB 1125 is intended to fix an inadvertent oversight in the association records law which was overhauled during the 2012 legislative session and went into effect on January 1, 2013. Currently, the Colorado Common Interest Ownership Act (“CCIOA”) prohibits associations from publishing the telephone numbers and email addresses of members. Obviously, this limits the information associations may publish in membership directories. 

HB 1125 permits an association to publish email addresses and telephone numbers of members and residents of the association, if those members or residents first provide written consent to their association to publish this information. Owners and residents may withdraw this written consent, but such withdrawal of consent does not require their association to go back and “change, retrieve or destroy” previously published telephone numbers or email addresses. Also, the bill permits owners and residents to electronically provide or withdraw their consent to their associations.Continue Reading HB 1125 Unanimously Clears House Business Committee

Winzenburg, Leff, Purvis & Payne, LLP, is pleased to announce that Doug Stallworthy will join the firm on February 10, 2014.  Doug previously focused his practice on real estate, commercial leasing, corporate law, civil litigation, community associations, and employment law.  At Winzenburg, Doug will focus on the transactional and business needs of community associations throughout…

Earlier today the Colorado HOA Information and Resource Office released its 2013 Annual Report. Interestingly, the number of complaints more than doubled – from 576 in 2012 to 1,248 in 2013 – but the number of people logging complaints only increased slightly from 309 complainants in 2012 to 327 in 2013. The most complaints…

 I have to admit, I’m not a fan but was intrigued when I discovered that Porscha Williams from the hit show ‘The Real Housewives’ was hit with a Judgment of nearly $18,000.00 for failing to pay association assessment fees and other charges. Apparently, a garnishment was authorized to attempt to collect the outstanding debt.  http://rollingout.com/tv/reality-tv-tv/porsha-williams-accused-owing-18000-homeowners-association/Continue Reading Even ‘Real Housewives’ Must Pay Assessments!

While folks were understandably concerned about an onerous transfer fee bill proposed by Representative Jeanne Labuda (D-Denver), and some even publicly announced that introduction and passage of the bill was a foregone conclusion, CAI’s Colorado Legislative Action Committee (“CLAC”) is pleased to announce that Representative Labuda has completely rewritten her proposed transfer fee bill to instead require managers and management companies to disclose the fees they charge and funds they receive related to their relationship with the HOAs they manage.

HB 14-1254 (“HB 1254”) was introduced today in the Colorado House of Representatives with Representative Labuda as the House Sponsor. Senator David Balmer (R-Centennial), who has been a champion of fair and balanced HOA legislation which also provides important consumer protections, has signed on as the Senate sponsor of the bill. Continue Reading Proposed Transfer Fee Bill Rewritten to Require Transparency

 We receive many calls from board members of homeowner association clients inquiring about complaints made by unhappy members of their communities and threats of lawsuits against the directors. The complaints run the full gamut from failure to enforce the governing documents, to unfair enforcement of the governing documents, to failure to abide by the governing documents or CCIOA, or any of a number of other complaints. Being a lawyer, I generally answer their question with one of my own – “You do have D & O insurance in place, don’t you?” I get a little worried when the answer is another question – “What’s that?”Continue Reading Protection for the Board – D & O Insurance