Arizona Judgment Collection

The United States District Court for the District of Arizona has ruled in a case brought under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (“FDCPA”) that a law firm that submits a demand for payment of unawarded post-judgment attorneys’ fees in a judgment-debtor’s refinance violates the FDCPA.

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in McNair v. Maxwell & Morgan, P.C., recently held that a law firm that files a judicial foreclosure action to collect unpaid homeowner association assessments is acting as a "debt collector" and engaging in "debt collection" activities subject to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act ("FDCPA"). 

The Arizona Court of Appeals, in a recently-published decision, clarified the circumstances under which an HOA was allowed to collect attorneys' fees from a homeowner. In Bocchino v. Fountain Shadows Homeowners Association, the Court of Appeals held that an HOA was not entitled to collect attorneys' fees that it purportedly incurred in obtaining an Injunction Against Harassment against a homeowner when it did not seek an award of attorney fees from the court and no fees were awarded by the court. Dessaules Law Group represented the successful homeowner.

The failure to maintain and repair can cost an HOA. In this case, the failure to repair a known faulty swing set will cost an HOA $20,000,000.00.

You get served with or receive a copy of a lawsuit. Maybe it’s a small amount. Or maybe you think they have the wrong party because you’ve read through the complaint and none of it sounds familiar. Or maybe you think, “well, they can’t get blood from a turnip so who cares if they get a judgment against me?!” Or here’s a classic line we hear all the time: “But I didn’t do anything wrong, so there’s no way a judge will let them get a judgment against me. Wrong, wrong, wrong, and (in case you didn’t know where I’m going with this)....wrong!

Always get a lawyer involved early and often. Why? Because if you do it incorrectly you’ll likely make things a lot worse for you and your neighbors. More importantly, a board member generally does not have to face more than one removal petition during his or her term of office. So, an improper removal could prevent your neighbors from doing it correctly.