Page 26 - New England Condominium October 2021

26 NEW ENGLAND CONDOMINIUM -OCTOBER 2021 NEWENGLANDCONDO.COM Flynn Law Group 185 Devonshire St., Suite 401 • Boston, MA 02110 617-988-0633 “Quality Representation at Reasonable Rates - $150/Hr.” Contact Attorney Frank Flynn Frank@ ynnlaw-ne.com www. ynnlaw-ne.com ATTORNEYS See Our Display Ad on Page 26 See Our Display Ad on Page 7 See Our Display Ad on Back Page Condominium and Real Estate Law Phone: (781) 817-4900 Direct: (781) 817-4603 Fax: (781) 817-4910 We may be dressed up, but we aren’t afraid to get our hands dirty. www.lawmtm.com Merrill & McGeary 100 State Street, Suite 200 Boston, MA 02109 617-523-1760 • Fax 617-523-4893 Contact: Mike Merrill, Esq. mmerrill@merrillmcgeary.com ACCOUNTANTS David A. Levy, CPA, P.C. Certified Public Accountants 20 Freeman Place Needham, MA 02492 Tel: (617) 566-3645 (866) 842-0108 Fax: (866) 681-2377 www.DALCPAPC.net DAL CPA Accounting • Auditing • Taxes • Consulting Worcester 67 Millbrook Street 508-797-5200 Grafton 80 Worcester Street 508-839-0020 Holden 795 Main Street 508-829-5544 M Love Associates, & LLC Certified Public Accountants Serving Condominium Associations mlove 2.25 x 2.5 condo association color 9.19.2017.indd 1 9/19/17 12:59 PM ROOFING SIDING WINDOWS DECKS . . . www.atlanticcontractingservices.com david@atlanticcontractingservices.com 978-378-4778 Atlantic Contracting Services is a full-service contractor that specializes in James Hardie siding installations for New England condo associations and multi-family residential properties. We provide HOA’s with a professional solution for your capital improvements - from siding replacement, to roofing, window, door, and deck projects. With over 20 years of experience using James Hardie products to re-side over 1,500 homes and condos, we are the safe and smart choice for your renovation project! Increase Curb Appeal and Resale Value of Homeowner Units with James Hardie Fiber-cement Siding. Certified. Licensed. Insured. 185 Devonshire Street, Suite 401, Boston, MA 02110 Quality Representation at Reasonable Rates. (617) 988-0633 Contact Attorney Frank Flynn: FRANK@FLYNNLAW-NE.COM Flynn_E4C.qxp:Layout 1 12/8/14 2:30 PM Page 1 ddlevy@roofmaxx.com 5 0 8 -4 4-4 7 66 3 DON’T REPLACE YOUR ROOF… REJUVENATE IT WITH ROOF MAXX! views have changed over time. “Courts have generally expanded what residents of co-ops and condominiums may now have access to,” says Hakim. “Basically, provided the person seeking the information executes an affi davit stating that the information is for legitimate corporate purposes, New York residents may now have access to almost anything related to their building, within reason. Th ere is no law that requires dissemination of sensitive per- sonal information of any resident, and there is legitimate corporate purpose for the same. We recommend that prior to opening the books to any resident, the managing agent and board ensure that anything that is sen- sitive or privileged be removed or redacted, to avoid claims of a breach of privacy and fi duciary duty, and possibly negligence. Dur- ing COVID-19, boards may disclose the exis- tence of the virus at the building, but should never disclose the infected person’s name and/or apartment number without that resi- dent’s prior permission.” From a more practical point of view, Wolf points out that “\\\\\\\[a board’s\\\\\\\] directors and offi cers (D&O) insurance policy should cover any problems arising from this. Th ere is always human error and accident. But the board should also consult with their attor- ney. As long as they act in good faith, and with the best interest of the community in mind, they’re covered.” He adds that the ac- tions of the board member would have to be something really egregious to get the board member in trouble in executing their fi du- ciary obligations, and it is the job of a good manager to catch something like that before it happens. “A board member, or the board gener- ally,” says Hakim, “could be in breach of its fi duciary obligations for any improper disclosure, and could see a resident assert a claim of negligence if any of the released in- formation damages the resident, and/or is a breach of their privacy. We don’t wish to test whether the building’s D&O policy will cover the alleged breach—thus we err on the side of caution and advise boards not to disclose anything that even may be sensitive or pri- vate. If there is any doubt, let the court decide the issue if it goes that far—but we oft en fi nd that court interaction is not necessary or re- quested aft er a discussion with the requesting parties or their counsel.” In the end, how should board members handle persistent residents seeking propri- etary information beyond what legal trans- parency suggests? “All they can do is be polite and fi rm,” says Wolf, “and rest on legal opin- ion and precedent. Tell them that the board has been advised that they can’t provide the documents, and advise the person asking for the information to contact the association’s attorney. But always keep it polite.” n A J Sidransky is a staff writer/reporter for New England Condominium, and a published novelist. TRANSPARENCY... continued from page 11 See us at Booth 122 See us at Booth 211 See us at Booth 400