Condominium Litigation
Disputes and litigation are common within the condominium community because decisions regarding the daily operations of a condominium are governed by an elected board. Unfortunately, this often results in friction between boards and unit owners when it comes to maintaining the condominium property and charging maintenance and/or assessments.
The team at Martinez Morales guides our clients through their rights and options. Our unit owner clients routinely request guidance on their rights as condominium owners, such as questions on how to interpret the condominium’s declaration or other governing documents, what their rights are under those documents, whether they can alter or modify their unit, what restrictions govern the sale of their unit. Further, many unit owners seek us out when their board simply isn’t doing its job right and is breaking the condominium’s own rules.
Our team has vast litigation experience enforcing the terms of condominium declarations and other governing documents against condominium associations. For example, we have prosecuted lawsuits on behalf of unit owners against condominium associations for:
Failure to maintain and repair the common elements of the building
Breaching the condominium declaration by improperly charging late fees
Damage caused to a unit due to the association’s negligence
Injunctions to protect against further violation of condominium rules and regulations
Termination of condominium
Failure to indemnify board members when sued personally by a third party
Breach of fiduciary duty by either the board as a whole or individual board members
Negligent hiring and supervision
Other disputes by, between and among condominium association boards and unit owners
In addition, our team has also litigated disputes between unit owners, such as when one unit owner causes damage to another unit.
Our team’s litigation experience protecting unit owner rights does not stop in the courtroom. We have also arbitrated disputes before the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation – including but not limited to disputes over a board’s refusal to allow owners access to condominium records, and associations’ improper directives to unit owners to take actions such as removing flooring from their unit. In addition, we have successfully resolved numerous condominium disputes in mediation.
We believe in effectively addressing legal concerns and helping clients and all parties involved resolve disputes. With our complementary transactional practice, Martinez Morales is also equipped to handle real estate matters when dealing with issues concerning condominium laws, including but not limited to closings on condominium units.
On the other side of the table, we have also represented boards in prosecuting violations of the declaration against unit owners who have failed to maintain their unit and caused damage to the condominium common elements. Due to the nature of condominiums, boards often require the assistance and guidance of competent counsel to wade through the issues facing condominiums daily. This includes both litigation and general advisory services.
In terms of advisement, our condominium association clients often contact us with questions on how to interpret their declaration, other governing documents, Florida condominium law, and Florida condominium administrative regulations, and for guidance on proposed courses of action. Our team can also assist in drafting legal documentation a board needs to carry out its official business, such as ballots, meeting notices, declaration amendments, and proxy forms, and reviewing contracts and other legal documents.
Our condominium/community association experience is not limited to disputes between boards or owners, or even between owners – we also assist condominium/community association boards in claims against third parties, such as construction defect claims, first- and third-party insurance claims, negligence, and other types of disputes to which a condominium association becomes a party. We also are experienced in the drafting and negotiation of service provider contracts, collection of delinquent accounts matters, turnover meetings, and drafting and negotiation of loan/line of credit documents, among other community association matters.
Additionally, we have represented homeowners’ associations before local zoning boards in their opposition to redevelopment of their neighborhood, and successfully negotiated with developers to reduce the size and impact of their construction project.
