Well, the NJ Court of Appeals has handed down its long-awaited decision in the Twin Rivers case - although it is far from the final act in this long-running drama. For those of you who have not been following this case as it has wound its way through the NJ court system, the basic contention is that the Twin Rivers Community Association is not a corporation, but a government, and is thus subject to the limitations on governmental action defined in the NJ State Constitution related to freedom of expression, voting, rule-making, etc.
In its decision, the Appeals Court found for the plaintiffs on several issues, particularly related to freedom of expression, and for the association on several issues, including voting rights and rule-making. For a quick summary of the decision, a copy of the full appellate court opinion, and some additional analysis by CAI members in NJ, you can check out: http://www.caionline.org/govt/news/twin_rivers.cfm .
Why is this important to those who live and work in associations? First and foremost, associations are corporations just like Google and the local hardware store. No court would ever find that Google is a governmental entity and subject to such constitutional restrictions. Why should associations be treated any differently? Second, treating an association as a government is not the path to efficiency and effectiveness. The reality is that corporations are inherently more efficient than governments. The law of unintended consequences would seem to indicate that making associations comply with governmental restrictions will raise costs, decrease efficiency, and lead to even more complaints about rising assessments and how funds are allocated. Finally, how far should this go? Will board members have to make their personal finances and backgrounds public, as do many elected officials? Will we have the nation's partisan political atmosphere infect our associations? Let's hope not.
This is far from the last we will hear about this case. The Appeals Court remanded the case back to the lower court for rehearing and there is still the potential for an appeal to the State Supreme Court on this and any future rulings.
As they used to say in TV-land, don't touch that dial.
