Who May Challenge. Any director or any person who had the right to vote in the election has standing to challenge the election. Civil Code §1363.09(a), Corp. Code §7616(a).

Statute of Limitations. Although the statute of limitations for CC&R amendments has been settled, there is a conflict in the law as to the cutoff for other election challenges. Corp. Code §7527 requires that any right to challenge an election expires nine (9) months following the election. The election provisions in the Davis-Stirling Act supports 9-month cutoff to challenges by stating that,

The sealed ballots at all times shall be in the custody of the inspector or inspectors of election or at a location designated by the inspector or inspectors until after the tabulation of the vote, and until the time allowed by Section 7527 of the Corporations Code for challenging the election has expired, at which time custody shall be transferred to the association. (Civil Code §1363.09(h))

The conflict is found in Civil Code §1363.09(a), which states that "A member of an association may bring a civil action for declaratory or equitable relief for a violation of this article by an association of which he or she is a member, including, but not limited to, injunctive relief, restitution, or a combination thereof, within one year of the date the cause of action accrues." One unpublished case, Lushmeadows Association v. Taggs, supports the 9-month limitation to challenging elections.

Expedited Hearing. Upon the filing of the complaint, and before any further proceedings are had, the court shall enter an order fixing a date for the hearing, which shall be within 5 days unless for good cause shown a later date is fixed. Corp. Code §7616(c).