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Sudden Valley directors receive legal and parliamentary training as state HOA law changes loom
Summary
At a board orientation session, attorney Richard Davis reviewed Washington HOA law changes and governance duties; parliamentarian Paul McClintock covered meeting procedure and the board—hair nd parliamentarian roles. Directors were urged to update governing documents ahead of January 1, 2028, statutory changes.
Richard Davis, an attorney with CSD Law, and parliamentarian Paul McClintock led an orientation for the Sudden Valley Community Association Board of Directors that emphasized directorslegal duties, upcoming statewide statutory changes, and practical meeting rules.
Davis told directors their roles include fiduciary duties, a duty of disclosure and a requirement to exercise the care of an ordinarily prudent person; he also reviewed which state statutes now govern HOAs and which new provisions directors should plan to address in governing documents.
Davis said the association is currently governed by the HOA act identified in the discussion as "6438" and by the nonprofit corporation statute referenced in the presentation (noted in the session as "24038"). He described the Washington Uniform Common Interest Ownership Act (referred to in the session as "Wacoia") and said portions of it already apply to some topics and that the association should expect broader coverage by Jan. 1, 2028. "When budgeting time comes for 20 27 [2027], I think the document review committee will be active," Davis said, urging changes to declarations and bylaws to reduce conflicts with the incoming statute.
The training also covered closed-session use, minutes, conflict-of-interest handling and the business-judgment rule. Davis recommended brief minutes that record official actions rather than extended debate transcripts, and advised that directors rely on outside experts when a decision requires technical or financial expertise. He described good-practice rules for committees, advising that chartered task forces have clear scopes, deliverables and sunset dates and that the board retain oversight and the right to disband a committee that is not delivering results.
McClintock, the meeting ppointed parliamentarian, reviewed Robert—ommittees Rules of Order procedures the association uses and the role of a meeting parliamentarian when large membership votes are held. He told the board that a parliamentarian cts as an adviser to the presiding officer and that the chair alone retains power to rule on points of order; he recommended that the board appoint a nonmember parliamentarian for any membership meeting where votes are taken, and that the parliamentarian be consulted in advance of the meeting to review notices, ballots and proxies.
Davis and McClintock emphasized practical next steps: begin document-review work in 2027 so governing documents align with the incoming statewide law, adopt or update a code of conduct covering social media and confidentiality, and clarify committee charters and staff liaisons. Davis advised that closed-session deliberations remain confidential, and McClintock asked the board to ensure minutes record points of order and the chair nd any appeal votes.
The orientation closed with a recommendation that the document review committee and the board plan amendments well before the 2028 effective date and that the board consider staged revisions to reduce member confusion when state law supersedes older bylaw language.
