A common interest development manager or common interest development management firm shall disclose, in writing, any potential conflict of interest when presenting a bid for service to an association’s board of directors. “Conflict of interest,” for purposes of this section, means:
(a) Any referral fee or other monetary benefit that could be derived from a business or company providing products or services to the association.
(b) Any ownership interests or profit-sharing arrangements with service providers recommended to, or used by, the association.
Related Links
AB 690 Signed! New Management Disclosures and changes to the Escrow Document Disclosure Form – Published on HOA Lawyer Blog (July, 2017)
Civil Code Section 4620. Notice of Mechanics Lien.
If the association is served with a claim of lien pursuant to Part 6 (commencing with Section 8000) for a work of improvement on a common area, the association shall, within 60 days of service, give individual notice to the members, pursuant to Section 4040.
Related Links
AB 534 Signed: Associations to Provide Notice to Members of Lien Claims – Published on HOA Lawyer Blog (July 10, 2017)
Civil Code Section 4041. Annual Notice of Owner Contact Information.
(a) A member shall, on an annual basis, provide written notice to the association of all of the following:
(1) The member’s preferred delivery method for receiving notices from the association, which shall include the option of receiving notices at one or both of the following:
(A) A mailing address.
(B) A valid email address.
(2) An alternate or secondary delivery method for receiving notices from the association, which shall include the option to receive notices at one or both of the following:
(A) A mailing address.
(B) A valid email address.
(3) The name, mailing address, and, if available, valid email address of the owner’s legal representative, if any, including any person with power of attorney or other person who can be contacted in the event of the member’s extended absence from the separate interest.
(4) Whether the separate interest is owner-occupied, is rented out, if the parcel is developed but vacant, or if the parcel is undeveloped land.
(b)
(1) The association shall solicit the annual notices described in subdivision (a) of each owner and, at least 30 days before making its own required disclosure under Sections 5300 and 5310, shall enter the data into its books and records.
(2) The association shall include in the solicitation required by paragraph (1) both of the following:
(A) Notification that the member does not have to provide an email address to the association.
(B) A simple method for the member to inform the association in writing that the member wishes to change their preferred delivery method for receiving notices from the association.
(c) If a member fails to provide the notices set forth in subdivision (a), the last mailing address provided in writing by the member or, if none, the property address shall be deemed to be the address to which notices are to be delivered.
(d)
(1) To the extent that interests regulated in Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 11210) of Part 2 of Division 4 of the Business and Professions Code are part of a mixed-use project where those interests comprise a portion of a common interest development, the association, as defined in Section 4080, shall be deemed compliant with this section if, at least once annually, it obtains from the time-share plan association a copy of the list described in subdivision (e) of Section 11273 of the Business and Professions Code, and enters the data into its books and records.
(2) Notwithstanding subdivision (e) of Section 11273 of the Business and Professions Code, the time-share plan association shall provide the list required by paragraph (1) to the association at least annually for this purpose.
(e) For the purposes of this section, a valid email address is one that, after a notice is sent, does not result in a bounce or other error notification indicating failure of the message. If the association delivers a notice to a member’s email address and finds that the email address provided is no longer valid, the association shall resend the notice to a mailing or email address identified by the member pursuant to Section 4040.
(Amended by Stats. 2022, Ch. 632, Sec. 1. (SB 1252) Effective January 1, 2023.)
Civil Code Section 4777. Pesticide Application; Required Notice.
(a) For the purposes of this section:
(1) “Adjacent separate interest” means a separate interest that is directly beside, above, or below a particular separate interest or the common area.
(2) “Authorized agent” means an individual, organization, or other entity that has entered into an agreement with the association to act on the association’s behalf.
(3) “Broadcast application” means spreading pesticide over an area greater than two square feet.
(4) “Electronic delivery” means delivery of a document by electronic means to the electronic address at, or through which, an owner of a separate interest has authorized electronic delivery.
(5) “Licensed pest control operator” means anyone licensed by the state to apply pesticides.
(6) “Pest” means a living organism that causes damage to property or economic loss, or transmits or produces diseases.
(7) “Pesticide” means any substance, or mixture of substances, that is intended to be used for controlling, destroying, repelling, or mitigating any pest or organism, excluding antimicrobial pesticides as defined by the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (7 U.S.C. Sec. 136(mm)).
(b)
(1) An association or its authorized agent that applies any pesticide to a separate interest or to the common area without a licensed pest control operator shall provide the owner and, if applicable, the tenant of an affected separate interest and, if making broadcast applications, or using total release foggers or aerosol sprays, the owner and, if applicable, the tenant in an adjacent separate interest that could reasonably be impacted by the pesticide use with written notice that contains the following statements and information using words with common and everyday meaning:
(A) The pest or pests to be controlled.
(B) The name and brand of the pesticide product proposed to be used.
(C) “State law requires that you be given the following information:
CAUTION – PESTICIDES ARE TOXIC CHEMICALS. The California Department of Pesticide Regulation and the United States Environmental Protection Agency allow the unlicensed use of certain pesticides based on existing scientific evidence that there are no appreciable risks if proper use conditions are followed or that the risks are outweighed by the benefits. The degree of risk depends upon the degree of exposure, so exposure should be minimized.
If within 24 hours following application of a pesticide, a person experiences symptoms similar to common seasonal illness comparable to influenza, the person should contact a physician, appropriate licensed health care provider, or the California Poison Control System (1-800-222-1222).
For further information, contact any of the following: for Health Questions – the County Health Department (telephone number) and for Regulatory Information – the Department of Pesticide Regulation (916-324-4100).”
(D) The approximate date, time, and frequency with which the pesticide will be applied.
(E) The following notification:
“The approximate date, time, and frequency of this pesticide application is subject to change.”
(2) At least 48 hours prior to application of the pesticide to a separate interest, the association or its authorized agent shall provide individual notice to the owner and, if applicable, the tenant of the separate interest and notice to an owner and, if applicable, the tenant occupying any adjacent separate interest that is required to be notified pursuant to paragraph (1).
(3)
(A) At least 48 hours prior to application of the pesticide to a common area, the association or its authorized agent shall, if practicable, post the written notice described in paragraph (1) in a conspicuous place in or around the common area in which the pesticide is to be applied. Otherwise, if not practicable, the association or its authorized agent shall provide individual notice to the owner and, if applicable, the tenant of the separate interest that is adjacent to the common area.
(B) If the pest poses an immediate threat to health and safety, thereby making compliance with notification prior to the pesticide application unreasonable, the association or its authorized agent shall post the written notice as soon as practicable, but not later than one hour after the pesticide is applied.
(4) Notice to tenants of separate interests shall be provided, in at least one of the following ways:
(A) First-class mail.
(B) Personal delivery to a tenant 18 years of age or older.
(C) Electronic delivery, if an electronic mailing address has been provided by the tenant.
(5)
(A) Upon receipt of written notification, the owner of the separate interest or the tenant may agree in writing or, if notification was delivered electronically, the tenant may agree through electronic delivery, to allow the association or authorized agent to apply a pesticide immediately or at an agreed upon time.
(B)
(i) Prior to receipt of written notification, the association or authorized agent may agree orally to an immediate pesticide application if the owner or, if applicable, the tenant requests that the pesticide be applied before the 48-hour notice of the pesticide product proposed to be used.
(ii) With respect to an owner or, if applicable, a tenant entering into an oral agreement for immediate pesticide application, the association or authorized agent, no later than the time of pesticide application, shall leave the written notice specified in paragraph (1) in a conspicuous place in the separate interest or at the entrance of the separate interest in a manner in which a reasonable person would discover the notice.
(iii) If any owner or, if applicable, any tenant of a separate interest or an owner or, if applicable, a tenant of an adjacent separate interest is also required to be notified pursuant to this subparagraph, the association or authorized agent shall provide that person with this notice as soon as practicable after the oral agreement is made authorizing immediate pesticide application, but in no case later than commencement of application of the pesticide.
(6) A copy of a written notice provided pursuant paragraph (1) shall be attached to the minutes of the board meeting immediately subsequent the application of the pesticide.
Civil Code Section 1708.8. Invasion of Privacy.
(a) A person is liable for physical invasion of privacy when the person knowingly enters onto the land or into the airspace above the land of another person without permission or otherwise commits a trespass in order to capture any type of visual image, sound recording, or other physical impression of the plaintiff engaging in a private, personal, or familial activity and the invasion occurs in a manner that is offensive to a reasonable person.
(b) A person is liable for constructive invasion of privacy when the person attempts to capture, in a manner that is offensive to a reasonable person, any type of visual image, sound recording, or other physical impression of the plaintiff engaging in a private, personal, or familial activity, through the use of any device, regardless of whether there is a physical trespass, if this image, sound recording, or other physical impression could not have been achieved without a trespass unless the device was used.
(c) An assault or false imprisonment committed with the intent to capture any type of visual image, sound recording, or other physical impression of the plaintiff is subject to subdivisions (d), (e), and (h).
(d) A person who commits any act described in subdivision (a), (b), or (c) is liable for up to three times the amount of any general and special damages that are proximately caused by the violation of this section. This person may also be liable for punitive damages, subject to proof according to Section 3294. If the plaintiff proves that the invasion of privacy was committed for a commercial purpose, the person shall also be subject to disgorgement to the plaintiff of any proceeds or other consideration obtained as a result of the violation of this section. A person who comes within the description of this subdivision is also subject to a civil fine of not less than five thousand dollars ($5,000) and not more than fifty thousand dollars ($50,000).
(e) A person who directs, solicits, actually induces, or actually causes another person, regardless of whether there is an employer-employee relationship, to violate any provision of subdivision (a), (b), or (c) is liable for any general, special, and consequential damages resulting from each said violation. In addition, the person that directs, solicits, actually induces, or actually causes another person, regardless of whether there is an employer-employee relationship, to violate this section shall be liable for punitive damages to the extent that an employer would be subject to punitive damages pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 3294. A person who comes within the description of this subdivision is also subject to a civil fine of not less than five thousand dollars ($5,000) and not more than fifty thousand dollars ($50,000).
(f)
(1) The transmission, publication, broadcast, sale, offer for sale, or other use of any visual image, sound recording, or other physical impression that was taken or captured in violation of subdivision (a), (b), or (c) shall not constitute a violation of this section unless the person, in the first transaction following the taking or capture of the visual image, sound recording, or other physical impression, publicly transmitted, published, broadcast, sold, or offered for sale the visual image, sound recording, or other physical impression with actual knowledge that it was taken or captured in violation of subdivision (a), (b), or (c), and provided compensation, consideration, or remuneration, monetary or otherwise, for the rights to the unlawfully obtained visual image, sound recording, or other physical impression.
(2) For the purposes of paragraph (1), “actual knowledge” means actual awareness, understanding, and recognition, obtained prior to the time at which the person purchased or acquired the visual image, sound recording, or other physical impression, that the visual image, sound recording, or other physical impression was taken or captured in violation of subdivision (a), (b), or (c). The plaintiff shall establish actual knowledge by clear and convincing evidence.
(3) Any person that publicly transmits, publishes, broadcasts, sells, or offers for sale, in any form, medium, format, or work, a visual image, sound recording, or other physical impression that was previously publicly transmitted, published, broadcast, sold, or offered for sale by another person, is exempt from liability under this section.
(4) If a person’s first public transmission, publication, broadcast, or sale or offer for sale of a visual image, sound recording, or other physical impression that was taken or captured in violation of subdivision (a), (b), or (c) does not constitute a violation of this section, that person’s subsequent public transmission, publication, broadcast, sale, or offer for sale, in any form, medium, format, or work, of the visual image, sound recording, or other physical impression, does not constitute a violation of this section.
(5) This section applies only to a visual image, sound recording, or other physical impression that is captured or taken in California in violation of subdivision (a), (b), or (c) after January 1, 2010, and shall not apply to any visual image, sound recording, or other physical impression taken or captured outside of California.
(6) Nothing in this subdivision shall be construed to impair or limit a special motion to strike pursuant to Section 425.16, 425.17, or 425.18 of the Code of Civil Procedure.
(7) This section shall not be construed to limit all other rights or remedies of the plaintiff in law or equity, including, but not limited to, the publication of private facts.
(g) This section shall not be construed to impair or limit any otherwise lawful activities of law enforcement personnel or employees of governmental agencies or other entities, either public or private, who, in the course and scope of their employment, and supported by an articulable suspicion, attempt to capture any type of visual image, sound recording, or other physical impression of a person during an investigation, surveillance, or monitoring of any conduct to obtain evidence of suspected illegal activity or other misconduct, the suspected violation of any administrative rule or regulation, a suspected fraudulent conduct, or any activity involving a violation of law or business practices or conduct of public officials adversely affecting the public welfare, health, or safety.
(h) In any action pursuant to this section, the court may grant equitable relief, including, but not limited to, an injunction and restraining order against further violations of subdivision (a), (b), or (c).
(i) The rights and remedies provided in this section are cumulative and in addition to any other rights and remedies provided by law.
(j) It is not a defense to a violation of this section that no image, recording, or physical impression was captured or sold.
(k) For the purposes of this section, “for a commercial purpose” means any act done with the expectation of a sale, financial gain, or other consideration. A visual image, sound recording, or other physical impression shall not be found to have been, or intended to have been, captured for a commercial purpose unless it is intended to be, or was in fact, sold, published, or transmitted.
(l)
(1) For the purposes of this section, “private, personal, and familial activity” includes, but is not limited to:
(A) Intimate details of the plaintiff’s personal life under circumstances in which the plaintiff has a reasonable expectation of privacy.
(B) Interaction with the plaintiff’s family or significant others under circumstances in which the plaintiff has a reasonable expectation of privacy.
(C) If and only after the person has been convicted of violating Section 626.8 of the Penal Code, any activity that occurs when minors are present at any location set forth in subdivision (a) of Section 626.8 of the Penal Code.
(D) Any activity that occurs on a residential property under circumstances in which the plaintiff has a reasonable expectation of privacy.
(E) Other aspects of the plaintiff’s private affairs or concerns under circumstances in which the plaintiff has a reasonable expectation of privacy.
(2) “Private, personal, and familial activity” does not include illegal or otherwise criminal activity as delineated in subdivision (g). However, “private, personal, and familial activity” shall include the activities of victims of crime in circumstances under which subdivision (a), (b), or (c) would apply.
(m)
(1) A proceeding to recover the civil fines specified in subdivision (d) or (e) may be brought in any court of competent jurisdiction by a county counsel or city attorney.
(2) Fines collected pursuant to this subdivision shall be allocated, as follows:
(A) One-half shall be allocated to the prosecuting agency.
(B) One-half shall be deposited in the Arts and Entertainment Fund, which is hereby created in the State Treasury.
(3) Funds in the Arts and Entertainment Fund created pursuant to paragraph (2) may be expended by the California Arts Council, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to issue grants pursuant to the Dixon-Zenovich-Maddy California Arts Act of 1975 (Chapter 9 (commencing with Section 8750) of Division 1 of Title 2 of the Government Code).
(4) The rights and remedies provided in this subdivision are cumulative and in addition to any other rights and remedies provided by law.
(n) The provisions of this section are severable. If any provision of this section or its application is held invalid, that invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications that can be given effect without the invalid provision or application.
Civil Code Section 1708.83. Drone Restrictions.
(a) A person wrongfully occupies real property and is liable for damages pursuant to Section 3334 if, without express permission of the person or entity with the legal authority to grant access or without legal authority, he or she operates an unmanned aircraft or unmanned aircraft system less than 350 feet above ground level within the airspace overlaying the real property.
(b) For purposes of this section:
(1) “Unmanned aircraft” means an aircraft that is operated without the possibility of direct human intervention from within or on the aircraft.
(2) “Unmanned aircraft system” means an unmanned aircraft and associated elements, including communication links and the components that control the unmanned aircraft, that are required for the pilot in command to operate safely and efficiently in the national airspace system.
(c) This section shall not be construed to impair or limit any otherwise lawful activities of law enforcement personnel or employees of governmental agencies or other public or private entities that may have the right to enter land by operating an unmanned aircraft or unmanned aircraft system within the airspace overlaying the real property of another, including the right to use private lands acquired pursuant to subdivision (d) of Section 1009.
(d) Nothing in this section is intended to limit the rights and defenses available at common law under a claim of liability for wrongful occupation of real property.
Civil Code Section 1188.2. Rosenthal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act; Definitions.
(a) Definitions and rules of construction set forth in this section are applicable for the purpose of this title.
(b) The term “debt collection” means any act or practice in connection with the collection of consumer debts.
(c) The term “debt collector” means any person who, in the ordinary course of business, regularly, on behalf of himself or herself or others, engages in debt collection. The term includes any person who composes and sells, or offers to compose and sell, forms, letters, and other collection media used or intended to be used for debt collection, but does not include an attorney or counselor at law.
(d) The term “debt” means money, property or their equivalent which is due or owing or alleged to be due or owing from a natural person to another person.
(e) The term “consumer credit transaction” means a transaction between a natural person and another person in which property, services or money is acquired on credit by that natural person from such other person primarily for personal, family, or household purposes.
(f) The terms “consumer debt” and “consumer credit” mean money, property or their equivalent, due or owing or alleged to be due or owing from a natural person by reason of a consumer credit transaction.
(g) The term “person” means a natural person, partnership, corporation, limited liability company, trust, estate, cooperative, association or other similar entity.
(h) Except as provided in Section 1788.18, the term “debtor” means a natural person from whom a debt collector seeks to collect a consumer debt which is due and owing or alleged to be due and owing from such person.
(i) The term “creditor” means a person who extends consumer credit to a debtor.
(j) The term “consumer credit report” means any written, oral or other communication of any information by a consumer reporting agency bearing on a consumer’s creditworthiness, credit standing, credit capacity, character, general reputation, personal characteristics or mode of living which is used or expected to be used or collected in whole or in part for the purpose of serving as a factor in establishing the consumer’s eligibility for (1) credit or insurance to be used primarily for person, family, or household purposes, or (2) employment purposes, or (3) other purposes authorized under any applicable federal or state law or regulation. The term does not include (a) any report containing information solely as to transactions or experiences between the consumer and the person making the report; (b) any authorization or approval of a specific extension of credit directly or indirectly by the issuer of a credit card or similar device; or (c) any report in which a person who has been requested by a third party to make a specific extension of credit directly or indirectly to a consumer conveys his or her decision with respect to that request, if the third party advises the consumer of the name and address of the person to whom the request was made and such person makes the disclosures to the consumer required under any applicable federal or state law or regulation.
(k) The term “consumer reporting agency” means any person which, for monetary fees, dues, or on a cooperative nonprofit basis, regularly engages, in whole or in part, in the practice of assembling or evaluating consumer credit information or other information on consumers for the purpose of furnishing consumer credit reports to third parties, and which uses any means or facility for the purpose of preparing or furnishing consumer credit reports.
Civil Code Section 3479. “Nuisance” Defined.
Anything which is injurious to health, including, but not limited to, the illegal sale of controlled substances, or is indecent or offensive to the senses, or an obstruction to the free use of property, so as to interfere with the comfortable enjoyment of life or property, or unlawfully obstructs the free passage or use, in the customary manner, of any navigable lake, or river, bay, stream, canal, or basin, or any public park, square, street, or highway, is a nuisance.
Civil Code Section 1940.20. Clotheslines and Drying Racks; Tenant Protections.
(a) For purposes of this section, the following definitions shall apply:
(1) “Clothesline” includes a cord, rope, or wire from which laundered items may be hung to dry or air. A balcony, railing, awning, or other part of a structure or building shall not qualify as a clothesline.
(2) “Drying rack” means an apparatus from which laundered items may be hung to dry or air. A balcony, railing, awning, or other part of a structure or building shall not qualify as a drying rack.
(3) “Private area” means an outdoor area or an area in the tenant’s premises enclosed by a wall or fence with access from a door of the premises.
(b) A tenant may utilize a clothesline or drying rack in the tenant’s private area if all of the following conditions are met:
(1) The clothesline or drying rack will not interfere with the maintenance of the rental property.
(2) The clothesline or drying rack will not create a health or safety hazard, block doorways, or interfere with walkways or utility service equipment.
(3) The tenant seeks the landlord’s consent before affixing a clothesline to a building.
(4) Use of the clothesline or drying rack does not violate reasonable time or location restrictions imposed by the landlord.
(5) The tenant has received approval of the clothesline or drying rack, or the type of clothesline or drying rack, from the landlord.
Related Links
AB 1448 Signed! HOA Bans on Clotheslines Get ‘Hung out to Dry’ – Published on HOA Lawyer Blog (10/12/15)
Civil Code Section 4753. Clothesline and Drying Rack Restrictions.
(a) For purposes of this section, “clothesline” includes a cord, rope, or wire from which laundered items may be hung to dry or air. A balcony, railing, awning, or other part of a structure or building shall not qualify as a clothesline.
(b) For purposes of this section, “drying rack” means an apparatus from which laundered items may be hung to dry or air. A balcony, railing, awning, or other part of a structure or building shall not qualify as a drying rack.
(c) Any provision of a governing document, as defined in Section 4150, shall be void and unenforceable if it effectively prohibits or unreasonably restricts an owner’s ability to use a clothesline or drying rack in the owner’s backyard.
(d)
(1) This section does not apply to provisions that impose reasonable restrictions on an owner’s backyard for the use of a clothesline or drying rack.
(2) For purposes of this section, “reasonable restrictions” are restrictions that do not significantly increase the cost of using a clothesline or drying rack.
(3) This section applies only to backyards that are designated for the exclusive use of the owner.
(e) Nothing in this section shall prohibit an association from establishing and enforcing reasonable rules governing clotheslines or drying racks.
Related Links
AB 1448 Signed! HOA Bans on Clotheslines Get ‘Hung out to Dry’ – Published on HOA Lawyer Blog (10/12/15)