E-mails Are No Substitute For Board Meetings
June 12, 2013
E-mail has become a convenient and quick means of communication, allowing people to converse regardless of where they are. On the other hand, e-mail also allows people to avoid face-to-face communication and can easily obstruct the exchange of information and create misunderstandings. Thus, e-mail cannot replace all interpersonal communication. Unfortunately, some community association governing boards have become so dependent on the ease of e-mail that they use it in place of board meetings. That is a mistake. As discussed in more detail in our client alert, e-mail cannot replace board meetings.
You can read Hill Wallack LLP’s full client alert on this issue here.
For more information on this issue, please contact Michael S. Karpoff, Esq.
For more information on any other issue concerning your community association, please contact one of our Community Associations attorneys. For breaking news or updates on new blog posts, follow us on Twitter at: @njcondolaw.
Hill Wallack’s Community Associations Group Welcomes New Partners and Announces Opening of New Morristown Office
June 3, 2013
Hill Wallack is pleased to announce that it has opened a new office in Morristown, New Jersey and has added two new partners in that office, Kenneth R. Sauter and Caroline Record.
Mr. Sauter has joined the firm as a partner in the firm’s Community Associations, Real Estate, and Banking & Financial Services practice groups. His practice is devoted to real estate matters, with particular emphasis on the representation of community associations. His practice includes commercial real estate transactions, leasing and financing; representation of commercial lenders, including community association lenders; land use and development; and general business representation.
Mr. Sauter is admitted to practice in New Jersey (1984). He earned his J.D. from Villanova School of Law and graduated summa cum laude from Fairleigh Dickinson University (B.S.). Prior to attending Villanova School of Law, Mr. Sauter was an accountant with Price Waterhouse and obtained his New Jersey Certified Public Accountant certification in 1981.
Ms. Record has joined the firm as a partner in the firm’s Community Associations and Real Estate practice groups. She concentrates her practice in the area of community association law and residential real estate. Ms. Record’s practice also includes estate planning and administration, special needs trusts, guardianship applications, foreclosure, and other real estate-related work. Previously, she was heavily involved in all aspects of construction defect litigation and was a representative of the steering committee for community associations in the FRT Plywood consolidated litigation in the early 1990’s.
Ms. Record is admitted to practice in New Jersey (1989), New York (1990), and Washington D.C. (1991). She earned her J.D. from Seton Hall University School of Law and her B.A. from Rutgers College.
Hill Wallack LLP’s Managing Partner, Robert W. Bacso noted: “We are excited about the addition of Ken and Caroline to the firm. They bring with them extensive knowledge in the field of Community Associations and Real Estate. Their joining, in conjunction with the opening of our Morristown office, demonstrates our firms continued growth and commitment to serving our clients.”
Enforcement of Furnace Efficiency Standards Delayed… Again
May 21, 2013
The high efficiency furnace rules case has taken a new procedural turn. On May 1, 2013, a panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit issued an emergency order staying implementation of the new rules requiring non-weatherized gas furnaces installed in the northern regions of the country to be 90% efficient. That order did not resolve the case but rather simply put on hold the application of the proposed regulations until the court actually rules on the propriety of a settlement agreement entered by the parties. The effect of this ruling is that the new standards did not take effect on May 1, 2013 as initially proposed, but no decision has yet been made whether they will take effect on a future date.
For those who have been following the issue, in 2011, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) promulgated new energy conservation standards for air conditioners and heating units. A portion of the new standards applies to new installations of non-weatherized gas furnaces on or after May 1, 2013 and increases the efficiency requirements of those units from 78% to 90%. A lawsuit challenging the furnace standards on both substantive and procedural grounds was filed by the American Public Gas Association. The lawsuit was settled last year, and for several months, the settlement has been awaiting the approval of the appeals court. The DOE announced in April that it would not begin enforcing the new rules before the court rules on the settlement agreement. The recent court ruling neither approved nor disapproved the settlement but stayed implementation of the new rules, thus officially preventing the DOE from enforcing the rules for the time being. It also set some procedural requirements for the eventual hearing on the merits.
The proposed standards are significant to community associations because the new furnaces vent much differently than existing ones and require modifications to units and common elements, which may be difficult or impossible because of space limitations or building code issues.
You can view the District of Columbia Circuit’s order here.
For more information on this or any other issue concerning your community association, please contact one of our Community Associations attorneys. For breaking news or updates on new blog posts, follow us on Twitter at: @njcondolaw.
Join Us at the 2013 CAI-Pa/Del Val Annual Conference & Expo at Citizens Bank Park
May 7, 2013
Hill Wallack LLP’s Community Association Practice Group will be exhibiting at the 2013 CAI – Pennsylvania and Delaware Valley Chapter Annual Conference & Expo, which is being held on May 9, 2013, from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania at Citizens Bank Park, home of the Philadelphia Phillies.
The 2013 Conference Keynote Speaker is Gloucester County Freeholder and former Penn State Football player Adam Taliaferro.
For more information or to register to attend, click here!
Hanson to Speak on Superstorm Sandy Claims at the 2013 New Jersey Cooperator’s Condo, HOA and Co-op Expo
April 30, 2013
Hill Wallack LLP Partner Gerard H. Hanson, Esq. will be speaking during a seminar titled “Superstorm Sandy: Protecting Your Community by Pursuing Your Claim” at the 2013 New Jersey Cooperator’s Condo, HOA and Co-op Expo, on Wednesday, May 1, 2013, at the Meadowlands Exposition Center in Secaucus, New Jersey. This seminar, which will be held at 1:00pm – 2:00pm, in Seminar Room 1, will discuss how to protect your association by avoiding common pitfalls in pursuing damage claims. Learn to navigate the complicated claims process in order to maximize recovery in the least amount of time. A question and answer portion will follow the presentation.
Presenting with Jerry Hanson will be Alan Garfinkel, Esq. of Katzman Garfinkel & Berger, who is one of the nation’s leading authorities on Natural Disaster law.
For more information or to register to attend, click here!