Association Law

What does the firm's association law practice cover?

The firm represents Florida community associations across the full lifecycle of governance, compliance, and litigation. Our work covers four categories:

Board representation and governance. Acting as general counsel to HOA and condo boards: meeting and election guidance, document interpretation, fiduciary duty advice, conflict-of-interest analysis, and board policies. Day-to-day questions get same-day or next-day responses.

Document drafting and amendments. Drafting and amending Declarations of Covenants, Bylaws, Articles of Incorporation, and Rules. Includes Marketable Record Title Act (MRTA) preservation, covenant updates for legal compliance, and document modernization.

Collections and lien enforcement. Pursuing unpaid assessments through demand letters, lien filings, foreclosure actions, and bankruptcy participation. Florida gives associations one of the strongest collection mechanisms in the country, and we use it.

Litigation. Covenant enforcement actions, owner disputes, contractor and vendor disputes, board removal challenges, election contests, and post-Surfside structural inspection compliance. Led by Cory Carano, of counsel to the firm.

HOA vs. condo association: Chapter 720 vs. Chapter 718

The single most important distinction in Florida community association law is whether the community is an HOA (governed by Florida Statutes Chapter 720) or a condominium association (governed by Chapter 718). They look similar from the outside but operate under different statutory frameworks.

Our deeper comparison is in understanding the difference between Chapter 720 and Chapter 718.

Florida association law service areas

The firm serves Florida community associations from offices in West Palm Beach and Boca Raton.

Board governance services

Most ongoing association legal work falls into board governance. Day-to-day questions about meetings, elections, document interpretation, fiduciary duty, and member disputes:

• Annual and special meetings. Notice requirements, quorum, proxy procedures, voting mechanics, minutes.
• Election administration. Nomination process, ballot preparation, election challenges, recall petitions.
• Document interpretation. Day-to-day questions about what the Declaration, Bylaws, Rules, and Articles actually require.
• Fiduciary duty advice. Board member personal liability exposure, conflict-of-interest situations, business judgment rule application.
• Member disputes. Architectural review disputes, rule violations, neighbor disputes, harassment claims.
• Contracts and vendors. Review of management contracts, vendor agreements, landscaping, security, pool maintenance, insurance.
• Insurance coordination. D&O coverage advice, property insurance compliance, claims coordination, especially post-storm.
• Reserve studies and funding. Statutory reserve requirements, structural integrity reserve studies (SIRS), funding shortfalls.

Florida condo legislation post-Surfside

Senate Bill 4-D and subsequent legislation enacted after the Champlain Towers South collapse imposed significant new obligations on Florida condo associations. The legislation is still being interpreted, refined, and amended.

Milestone Inspections. Condo and cooperative buildings three stories or higher must undergo milestone structural inspections at 30 years (25 years for buildings within three miles of the coastline). Findings must be reported to local building officials.

Structural Integrity Reserve Studies (SIRS). Required for buildings three stories or higher. Studies must address roof, load-bearing walls, floor, foundation, fireproofing, plumbing, electrical, waterproofing, windows, and other items identified by the inspector. Reserves for these components must be fully funded; the prior practice of waiving reserves is no longer permitted.

Mortgage warrantability impact. A growing list of South Florida condo buildings have been added to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac non-warrantable lists. Non-warrantable status dramatically affects financing availability and unit resale values. Our piece on South Florida's mortgage blacklist covers the implications.

Owner-side compliance pressure. Special assessments to fund newly-required reserves can add tens of thousands per unit. Boards face fiduciary obligations to levy assessments responsibly; owners face cash-flow strain. Our role is helping boards navigate the politics and the math.

Marketable Record Title Act (MRTA) preservation

Under Florida's Marketable Record Title Act, certain restrictive covenants can be extinguished if not affirmatively preserved every 30 years. This catches many older HOAs by surprise. Communities established in the 1980s and 1990s are now hitting the 30-year mark, and some are discovering that their architectural restrictions, use restrictions, and other covenants are at risk of expiring.

MRTA preservation requires a specific Notice of Preservation filed with the county clerk before the 30-year mark, with statutory content requirements. We handle MRTA reviews and preservation filings as part of ongoing board representation.

Why work with Kelley, Grant & Tanis, P.A.

The firm's association law work spans both transactional and litigation matters. Cory Carano, of counsel to the firm, leads litigation including covenant enforcement, collections, board disputes, and post-Surfside compliance litigation. Transactional governance work is handled by the firm's general counsel team. All firm attorneys are members in good standing of the Florida Bar. Full attorney bios on our attorneys page.

The firm has two offices in South Florida:

• West Palm Beach Office: 1645 Palm Beach Lakes Blvd, Suite #1200-3, West Palm Beach, FL 33401
• Boca Raton Office: 370 Camino Gardens Blvd., Suite #301, Boca Raton, FL 33432

Association law integrates with the firm's other practice areas. HOA-governed property transactions involve estoppel letters and document review from our title insurance and real estate practices. Eviction and tenant issues in association-governed rental property involve our eviction practice. Estate planning for association board members and unit owners is handled by our estate planning practice.

Frequently Asked Questions