Meeting Dates. "Regular meetings" of the board are regularly scheduled meetings set on a particular day, such as the 2nd Tuesday of each month. Regular meeting dates and times can be established in the bylaws or set by the board if not in the bylaws. The frequency of regular meetings is sometimes established in the association's bylaws. Most boards meet monthly, which facilitates the monthly financial review requirements of Civil Code § 5500, as amended in 2019. However, for boards without enough activity to warrant monthly meetings, directors might fulfill those requirements with independent monthly reviews of the financial records and then confirm such reviews in quarterly board meetings.
When setting regular meeting dates and times, directors should be sensitive to the needs of fellow directors and accommodate schedules whenever reasonable. However, boards cannot be held hostage to the schedule of a single director. If a director has difficulty attending because of his work schedule, vacations, or family obligations, he can always attend by phone. Since directors have a duty to attend meetings, a board member who is too busy to regularly attend should consider resigning so another volunteer can fill the seat.
Religious Observance and Holidays. Scheduling meetings for Saturdays or Sundays can sometimes be a problem if any of the directors observe either of the days as part of their religion. There is no law that directly applies to this situation because serving on the board is a volunteer position. Even though Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 does not apply, it requires employers to reasonably accommodate employees' sincerely held religious beliefs unless doing so would impose an undue hardship on the employer. Accommodating a well-recognized religious practice or holiday should be taken into account when scheduling meetings.
Special Meetings. Special meetings of the board are those not regularly scheduled in the bylaws or by the board, which can be called as needed.
Meeting Times. Meeting times are set by the board for the convenience of director schedules so they can, as volunteers, attend to the association's business. For many, the time is early evening to allow directors to meet after returning home from work. A 6:00 or 6:30 p.m. meeting time is common. Early morning meetings are not unusual. Directors schedule meetings at 7:30 a.m. to take care of business before going to work. Meeting times are for the convenience of directors who are volunteers, not for the membership. Non-director members of the community who like to sleep in may complain about early morning meetings, but dates and times must accommodate directors and their schedules.
Meeting Location. The venue or location for board meetings is often required by the bylaws or the articles of incorporation to be "at or near the development." However, the governing documents are sometimes silent. In that case, the Corporations Code states that:
Meetings of the board may be held at any place within or without the state that has been designated in the notice of the meeting or, if not stated in the notice or if there is no notice, designated in the bylaws or by resolution of the board. (Corp. Code § 7211(a)(5).)
If boards are meeting in obscure locations so as to discourage membership attendance, the membership has recourse by (i) electing boards that are more responsive to the membership's interests or (ii) amending the bylaws to require that meetings be held in the development (provided facilities are available).
Offsite Facilities. For many associations, there are no adequate meeting facilities in the development, and they meet at a local library, church, community facility, or restaurant. If management company offices are available, meetings can be held there.
Virtual Meetings. Whenever appropriate, boards should consider setting up virtual meetings.
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