An Overview of the Corporate Transparency Act: Beneficial Ownership Requirements, Reporting Obligations, and Exemptions
OVERVIEW On January 1, 2024, Congress’ Corporate Transparency Act (“CTA”) went into effect. According to Congress, the purpose of the CTA is to combat financial crimes like money laundering and tax fraud by enhancing transparency in the ownership structures of U.S....
Mandatory Annual Disclosures that CA HOAs Must Make to Members
OVERVIEW The Davis-Stirling Act, a set of laws that governs California's HOAs, requires HOAs to provide its members with a whole host of annual disclosures. These mandatory annual disclosures, which must generally be provided to all homeowners anywhere from 30 to 90...
New HOA Laws for California Homeowners for 2024
OVERVIEW Each year, the number of California homeowners living in common interest developments communities governed by homeowners associations (HOAs) continues to grow. Since all common interest developments in California are governed by the Davis-Stirling Act,...
The Top 10 Reasons You Should Read Your HOA’s CC&Rs
OVERVIEW When you purchase a home in a community governed by an HOA, you automatically agree to abide by the HOA’s covenants, conditions, and restrictions (the “CC&Rs”). The CC&Rs are a set of rules and regulations that outline the rights and responsibilities...
Key Tips for Operating Your Member-Managed LLC in California
OVERVIEW Starting a limited liability company (“LLC”) in California is a popular choice for entrepreneurs who want the liability protection of a corporation combined with the tax efficiencies and operational flexibility of a partnership. In California, LLCs come in...
The Top 20 Things to Remember Before Your Deposition
OVERVIEW Depositions play an indispensable role in civil litigation. Simply put, a deposition is the questioning of a witness under oath, in the presence of a court reporter, who is trained to take down every word of testimony. Before delving into how you can best...
Score One for California’s Elder Abuse Statute
On September 5, 2023, a Long Beach jury ordered Ken Allen Lamphear, a seasoned real estate investor from Los Angeles County, to pay $3 million in punitive damages for elder abuse and fraud against Suzanne "Susie" Yorgason, an 80-year-old Long Beach resident. The...
Everything You Wanted to Know About Reserve Studies
OVERVIEW HOAs in California are largely governed by the Davis-Stirling Act, a series of statutes located in the Civil Code. In other words, all HOAs in California must abide by the Davis-Stirling Act, as well as other applicable California laws. One of an HOA’s most...
Section 230: Free Speech, the Internet, and Terrorism
OVERVIEW This week, the United States Supreme Court is set to hear two separate cases challenging the legal immunity that Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996 (“CDA”) has provided to online platforms and social media websites for the last 26 years....
The CCPA and CPRA: Will Consumers in California Enjoy Increased Privacy Protections?
OVERVIEW In 2018, the State of California passed a sweeping consumer privacy protection law called the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 (“CCPA”). Then, in November of 2020, voters in California passed Proposition 24—the California Privacy Rights Act (“CPRA”),...
Why is my HOA Testing for Asbestos?
OVERVIEW Most people have heard of asbestos, and most people have even seen the commercials for law firms looking for class action parties whose “loved ones suffer from mesothelioma.” At the same time, many people think that the dangers associated with asbestos are...
Top 5 Concerns that Homeowners Have About Their HOAs
OVERVIEW We recently ran a statistical analysis of over 5,000 separate fact patterns to determine the nature of the most common disputes involving HOA members and their HOAs. The following represents the top five most common areas of concerns for HOA members. You’ll...
Your Roof is Damaged and You Live in an HOA. Now What?
OVERVIEW As a homeowner, protecting your property is always a top priority. The roof is among the most important parts of your home—not only because of its size, but also because of the relative costs of repairs/replacements, as well as its importance in protecting...
Misappropriation of HOA Funds
OVERVIEW Managing an HOA’s finances is among the most important duties that HOA members (i.e., homeowners) entrust to their board of directors. Such management responsibilities include everything from collecting and distributing funds for common expenses (e.g.,...
Weaponizing the Concept of Phantom Income
OVERVIEW Given how important the issue of phantom income is to anyone who owns shares in a corporation (or a membership interest in an LLC), one would expect most business owners to at least be familiar with the concept. Surprisingly, that isn’t the case. In fact, the...
Owner’s Guide to Florida HOA Laws
GOOD HOA v. BAD HOA A good HOA plays an important role in maintaining your property values and ensuring your quiet enjoyment of your property. A bad HOA can decrease the value of your home, force you to needlessly waste thousands of dollars, and turn your life upside...
Can California Homeowners Disband Their HOAs?
OVERVIEW Every so often we hear from homeowners who want to know whether it's possible to disband their homeowners association ("HOA").* Often such an inquiry arises because the homeowners are unhappy with how their HOA is being managed. In any case, we always provide...
Requirements for California Home Improvement Contracts
OVERVIEW The larger the residential construction project, the more anxiety homeowners feel—and not just because they have to live with the inherent noise and mess that go hand-in-hand with home improvement or construction, but also because of the horror stories...
The Basics About Buying a Franchise in California
OVERVIEW While a lot of people are familiar with the words “franchise,” “franchisor,” and “franchisee,” more often than not, if you asked them to explain the difference between those three terms, they’d have trouble doing so. For most people, when they hear the word...
Disputes Between Homeowners and Contractors
OVERVIEW A dispute with a contractor can turn into a nightmare for a homeowner. In fact, most homeowners are familiar with the horror stories surrounding shoddy workmanship, project abandonment, and outright fraud perpetrated by dishonest, incompetent, and/or...