On February 6, 2018, the matter of Penny Goudelock v. Sixty-01 Condominium was heard before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in Seattle. On behalf of the Community Associations Institute (“CAI”), I filed an amicus curae brief, and traveled to Seattle to assist local counsel with his preparation for oral argument.
The link to the video of oral argument may be found here:
The case deals with condominium assessments that arise after the filing of a Chapter 13 bankruptcy by the unit owner where that owner indicates an intent to surrender the property. The majority of Circuit Courts across the U.S. have found that those post-petition assessments may not be discharged by the owner, but several courts have found otherwise. Thus, the Association in this case and CAI on a larger scale are seeking a resolution of this open question. Obviously, since this is a federal bankruptcy issues, interpretation of the federal statute by one federal appellate court carries persuasive effect in other courts across the country.
The Condominium won in both the Bankruptcy Court and the District Court below. Regarding case law on the topic, the majority of courts have followed the Rosenfeld line of cases, which supports the condominium’s position, and the Bankruptcy Appellate Panel for the 9th Circuit has also followed that rationale.
Once again thanks to CAI for supporting our work and arguments on behalf of community associations across the nation.