Court Grants Owner Limited Fees in Prolonged Dispute Over Association Financial Records

This case involved a dispute between homeowner (“Owner”) and his homeowners association (“Association”) over Owner’s right to inspect various Association financial records that dated back to 2008. In 2016, the parties entered into a consent order that confirmed Owner’s right to inspect records sought by Owner and which directed the Association to make the requested records available to Owner. In 2021, contending that the Association failed to fully comply, Owner filed a supplemental motion in 2021 seeking enforcement of the consent order along with a finding of civil contempt by the Association along with an award of attorney’s fees in excess of $30,000 that were incurred by Owner.

The trial court dismissed Owner’s enforcement motion as moot, finding that the Association had substantially complied by providing the records, though disorganized, and awarded Owner only: