All,
I am requesting this email at the bottom written by Julio C. Espinosa Brown our
VEHOA LAWYER, and my response here to go out to each and every owner of VE.
I am an owner/ representative in VE, I have a voice as each of us does in our community and should; Nothing more, nothing less! If you look at this email below from Mr. Brown, There is one thing very clear and apparent. We have been down this same road before and continue to fail miserably with the same mistakes.
So, to avoid the continued games of control caused by this group in Valle Escondido, My suggestion is as follows (and I personally recommend each owner consider) This group individually and collectively signs an agreement to the VE owners association and agrees to the following in such an agreement:
1) The self appointed SC group and its advisers (or "agents" as a word they like to use) agree to personally indemnify each and every owner of Valle Escondido for all liabilities both personally against each of them and or in their self appointed capacities representing Valle Escondido owners. Such liabilities can / could include:
- A) Existing lawsuits / legal fees many of them are in with the developer and or Mr. Ralf Henrich, or associated expenses with said awards/judgments.
- B) This may include a future legal suit against them from Mr. Brown to enforce his 2 year contract they approved and signed without the HOA's authorization.
- C) This may be a new agreement or fees they spend from our HOA account to compensate other attorneys they seem to be employing on their behalf or decide without our authorization as owners.
- D) This may include other known or unknown actions which could injure our association and cause financial damage to each owner in VE due to their continued reckless actions not authorized or voted by the association of owners.
- E) They will agree to only use our funds for standard and known accepted general expenses such as security, trash pick up, approved maintenance items, landscaping, road improvements or other acceptable voted on expenses by community of owners, not the SC;
Should they not agree to sign this agreement of indemnification which we will prepare for them, then they agree to
- 2) RESIGN EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY AND work with all owners towards a call for a community general assembly (GA) meeting to vote for a complete new selection of owners to represent the VE HOA with a fresh start of owners with new ideas towards preventing these problems from ever happening again.
So to make it simple and clear, They must choose option 1 if they wish to fulfill their self appointed roles and the potential liabilities they personally cause or option 2 and resign immediately. Very simple choice with no deflection from either option 1 or 2!
I encourage all owners to stand up, be vocal and join me in this memorandum and if this group still persist to "stronghold" our HOA I would encourage we ask Mr. Brown to proceed with legal actions afforded him in representing us to remove them in accordance to Panamanian law.
I have not written this for anyone else's benefit, I am not an "agent" for anyone, I am simply sick and tired of the "childish" behavior and actions of this group. I am only attempting as an owner to voice my opinion to get to a solution.
I rest my peace. If you agree with me, please do not just email me, tell the entire community as your own voice and speak up or form your thoughts on your own resolution. We should all agree to respect others opinions. But we must hold those accountable who do not care about how they spend our money or commit it for personal use which could injure us as owners.
Silence is not our friend, Speak out!
Mark Schneider
Our attorney, JULIO.C.E.BROWN wrote:
Dear Associates:
In response to email set to you by the pseudo/Steering Committee, I hereby inform you that the call for Elections by the President and Secretary of the Board of Directors is completely legal and within the statutes of the internal Bylaws through Deed 1937 which states:
Article 10: President of the Association: The functions of the President of the Association are the following: represent the Association legally before any person, or entity and call and preside meetings
If we carefully observe what this article nowhere does it say that there is a Committee with the power to call elections or cancel elections. What this Steering Committee is doing is taking on the roles and authorities of the Board of Directors. IF we see the history of all elections and modifications of the bylaws, it is always the Board of Directors who by law, has this faculty and in our legislation there is no normative that indicates that a committee within an association may or may not do this call.
In regards to my contract as lawyer for the Association, I was contracted by the Association and verified by the disintegrated Committee, proof of this is that even on the Budget that was not approved by the majority included my fees, therefore I find it incredible that to date they keep on asserting my contract is ilegal.
On the other hand, I hereby inform you that the Developer will not enter into any kind of negotiations with the current Committee, as their lawyers are aware of the fact they cannot enter into any negotiations with parties that are assuming roles that do not correspond to them. The Developer will only negotiate with the parties that are legally assigned in their positions, and said parties will be chosen via an election in accordance to the community bylaws.
To date I have abstained from filing any lawsuits agains the Association, as within its members there are many people who appreciate my work and the work I have done for the Association, as with the five months of services provided I have achieved more than in ten years, additionally, I shall emphasize that the contract signed between myself and the Association through its legal representative, chosen for this position, and if I file a claim against the Association, I will be greatly affecting the finances of the Association, which is you, the homeowners.
In regards to the special power given the the President of the Association, it is completely legal, it is even notarized, giving me the authority to fully execute the best decisions in representation of the Association. We should indicate that this Steering Committee presided by people who have certain disconnect with reality and the law, are using your funds without any authorization to do it as is the case with:
1) Hiring and paying a lawyer with homeowner´s funds while there is a retained contracted lawyer with a defined time period.
2) Hiring administrative personnel without the consent of the President of the Association and without a contract signed by such
In regards to the aforesaid, we will be taking legal and administrative measures that represent the best interest of the community.
With that said, there is an advisor of this pseudo/Committee who was a lawyer in the United States and pretends to be so in Panama, therefore we warn that if these practices continue, he will be reported for unauthorized practice of a profession.
To resume, members, remember the Association is you and not a group of people who are only looking for themselves and not those of the community.
Julio C. Espinosa Brown
VEHOA LAWYER
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Señores Asociados:
En respuesta al correo remito a usted con de seudo-Comité Directivo tengo bien informarle que el llamando a elecciones por el Presidente y Secretario de la Asociación es completamente viable de acuerdo a lo que estipula el Reglamento inscrito mediante Escritura No. 1937 que dice lo siguiente:
