A couple years ago a new state law was passed requiring that associations have an internal complaint procedure once the regulations for such are issued by the Community Association Ombudsman under the Department of Professional & Occupational Regulation. The official responsible for prescribing an internal complaint procedure for all associations proposed the regulations for it and they have been approved by the Governor. All Associations should have a procedure in place NOW to be in compliance with the law and regulations.
The statute and the regulations are very specific about items that must be included but there is also flexibility to add other provisions that might better meet the needs of a given community. We have developed a procedure that will fit the needs of most associations however, every association can add features to their procedure so long as they do not contravene the regulations. Some associations may have procedures in place that need to be reviewed for compliance with the new regulations.
Please contact us if you wish to proceed with the drafting or review of your complaint procedures. It will require up to three months for a typical board to review and provide feedback to counsel on the procedure initially drafted, so the time to get started is NOW.