Liability – Insurance and Risk Management Issues

Many people are generally familiar with the concept that housing providers, real estate agents, and property management companies are subject to state and federal fair housing laws. However, it is important to know that community associations are also subject to those laws. State fair housing laws vary from state to state. These laws typically set forth a statutory procedure for the resolution of complaints of violations of those laws.

This post will focus mainly on the Virginia Fair Housing Law (“VFHL”) (Virginia Code Section 36-96.1, et seq.) and the Virginia process for complaint resolution.

What VFHL Covers

Virginia has a stated policy to provide fair housing throughout the Commonwealth. Va. Code § 36-96.1. The VFHL prohibits covered persons or entities from engaging in unlawful discriminatory housing practices. Va. Code § 36-96.3.
Continue Reading Virginia Fair Housing Law and Community Associations: Procedural Background and Best Practices in Handling Complaints

By recent decision, the Virginia Supreme Court weighed in on an insurance subrogation dispute arising out of a fire at a Virginia condominium. The case is illustrative as to situations that sometimes face community associations when there are casualty losses.

Subrogation: A Basic Explanation

Subrogation is a legal doctrine where a party who pays a loss on another’s behalf is permitted to “step into the shoes” of the payee (person receiving the funds) and enforce their rights as to a legal claim. An elementary principle of subrogation is that an insurer may not subrogate against its own insured. In other words, an insurer cannot sue its own insured for negligence under a subrogation theory. This is intuitive because if an insurer could sue an insured to recover such losses then there would not be much of a concept of insurance coverage (as any time the insurer paid a loss to an insured, there would be a strong incentive for the insurer to sue its own insured to recover the loss). Subrogation may be waived by contract.
Continue Reading Subrogation: Stepping into the Shoes of Another to Enforce Claims: the Virginia Supreme Court Hands Down an Opinion on Subrogation in the Context of a Condominium Fire

Given the worldwide coronavirus pandemic, many states have issued stay-at-home orders, and taken action to limit public gatherings. Given this sudden and extraordinary legal change, many community associations are facing difficulty in scheduling their meetings (annual and special meetings of members). Specifically, many community associations are facing the logistical challenge of conducting these meetings, via remote or electronic means, to accomplish community association business, minimize legal and health risks, and comply with the various stay-at-home orders.

2018 Legislative Changes to Remote Meeting Requirements

Before transitioning all meetings to remote or electronic means, community associations need to be careful and discuss the issue with their counsel to develop a workable plan. Back in 2018, we previously posted about a recent legislative amendment enacted by Virginia’s General Assembly permitting remote meetings under certain circumstances. The law has been codified as Virginia Code Section 13.1-844.2.

Under that statute law, nonstock corporations (which many community associations are) may conduct annual and special meetings of members via electronic means, provided that the governing documents (articles of incorporation and bylaws) do not require the meetings to take place at a particular location.
Continue Reading COVID-19 and Remote Community Association Meetings: A Closer Look at the Legal Requirements, and an Update on Virginia General Assembly’s Emergency Action