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STUPID ARGUMENTS FROM ATTORNEYS
By
Jan Bergemann
Published
April 8, 2017
Yes, I can absolutely understand when some attorneys argue that
certain provisions in the Condo Reform Bill (H
1237 + S 1682) have to be changed.
William Sklar, an attorney representing the Florida Bar, argued
that existing law should be used to prosecute violators -- not
laws added to the condo statutes. Guess what? It never worked
before! Does he think it will work in the future because he says
so? He is asking for clarification. The bill clearly clarifies
it: The criminal prosecution is now part of the condo statutes –
no more excuses! What more is there to clarify?
The argument from Yeline Goin,
attorney
from the law firm of Becker &
Poliakoff is even more ridiculous:
“We don't want the laws
to be used to punish people who make unintentional mistakes.”
This argument can
only come from an attorney
who is afraid of losing their cash cow. Remember: The bill has
provisions avoiding “unintentional mistakes!” Here
is the wording in the bill: “Any director or member of the
board or association who knowingly, willfully, and repeatedly
violates subparagraph 1. 148 commits a misdemeanor of the second
degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083. For
purposes of this subparagraph, the term “repeatedly violates”
means more than two violations within a 12-month period.”
How unintentional
can that be? For me that argument borders on absolute stupidity!
Make no mistake:
These attorneys are making big bucks trying to help board
members hiding records from the view of “nosy” owners who would
like to see what’s happening with their money.
What’s even worse is
the fact that Senator Greg Steube is allowed to vote on
this bill. In case you don’t know: He works for the law firm of
Becker & Poliakoff and the bill, if enacted, will have a direct
impact on his income. How would you define: CONFLICT OF
INTEREST? As you can imagine: He voted NO on the bill
– together with Senator Jeff Brandes, a realtor from
Pinellas County, another hotbed of condo fraud and scams.
Obviously Brandes loves to see condo scams to continue in his
district!
THIS HAS TO STOP!
Another nonsense argument:
Associations will have problems
finding volunteers for
the board if criminal charges are threatened for “knowingly,
willfully and repeatedly” violating the laws? Honestly: Condo
owners can really live without “volunteers” who knowingly and
willfully violate the laws!
In
my opinion these attorneys are making a laughing stock out of
themselves by arguing such nonsense in front of a Senate
Committee!
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Jan Bergemann is president of Cyber Citizens For Justice,
Florida
's largest state-wide property owners' advocacy group.
CCFJ works on legislation to help owners living in
community
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associations. He moved to
Florida
in 1995 - hoping to retire. He moved into a HOA, where the
developer cheated the homeowners and used the association dues
for his own purposes. End of retirement!
CCFJ was born in the year 2000, when some owners met in
Tallahassee
- finding out that power is only in numbers. Bergemann was a
member of Governor Jeb Bush's HOA Task force in 2003/2004.
The organization has two websites to inform interested
Florida
homeowners and condo owners:
News Website: http://www.ccfj.net/.
Educational Website: http://www.ccfjfoundation.net/.
We think that only owners can really represent owners, since all
service providers surely have a different interest! We are
trying to create owner-friendly laws, but the best laws are
useless without enforcement. And enforcement is totally lacking
in
Florida
!
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