Q. Our association’s board meetings have always been held in person, but for the convenience of one member who travels for business, the board has recently held its meetings via Zoom. The problem is that in the past, there was an opportunity for owners to ask questions or bring up issues of concern. But with the Zoom meetings, the board does not have the “chat” feature activated, and owners joining via Zoom are muted, so we have no voice at all. Is this legal? Can we force the board to open the meetings for owner participation?

                                          —Feeling Silenced

A. “The way in which this board is conducting its meetings is both legal and appropriate,” says Scott J. Sandler, managing partner at Sandler & Hanson in Middletown, Connecticut.

“While meeting requirements may vary from state to state, please keep in mind that board meetings are for board members, as opposed to meetings of the unit owners. The discussion, debate, and ultimately, the voting is done by board members. Only at meetings of the unit owners, which are conducted far less frequently than board meetings, may unit owners debate and vote on an issue. Furthermore, those issues are limited to when either state law or the community’s governing documents require a vote of the owners. By default, most association decisions are made by the board members acting as a group.

“Many states, including Connecticut where I practice, require board meetings to be open to the unit owners. The use of executive session, or a closed-door meeting, is limited to a short list of purposes. State laws generally favor transparency, which means allowing owners to observe the board’s discussions regarding most matters impacting the community and seeing how each board member voted on any given issue.  

“That transparency, however, does not extend to allowing unit owners to participate in the meeting. The owners may observe, but they may not interrupt the meeting.  

“That said, Connecticut law requires the board, at each meeting, to set aside some time for unit owners to comment on any matter affecting the community. This is not a Q&A session, but rather an opportunity for owners to raise issues that they would like the board to consider in the future”.