LNSU #1, LLC v. Alta Del Mar Coastal Collection Community Association
San Diego · CA · California Court of Appeal, Fourth District, Division One
MIXED · elections-meetings
What happened
LLC owners (managed by director Sukumar) sued Alta Del Mar over board email threads about fines/plans and executive-session practices under the Open Meeting Act. After a bench trial, the court rejected the OMA merits claims and awarded the association large attorney fees under Civ. Code § 5975 plus routine costs under § 4955(b) (~$348k fees plus costs). On August 25, 2023, the Court of Appeal (4th Dist., Div. 1) affirmed the OMA merits judgment but reversed the fee and cost awards.
What the court (or agency) held
PARTIAL — members lost Open Meeting Act merits but won fee/cost protection. The Court of Appeal held OMA suits are not 'actions to enforce the governing documents' for § 5975 fees, and § 4955(b) lets a prevailing association recover costs only if the member action is frivolous, unreasonable, or without foundation—which this case was not. Fee and cost awards against the members were reversed while the OMA merits judgment stood.
Why this matters for members
This result is MIXED — a partial win, not a clean sweep on every claim. Open Meeting Act litigation is fee-asymmetric: losing members are not automatically exposed to § 5975 governing-document fee shifting, and association cost recovery under § 4955(b) requires a frivolousness finding. Merit loss on OMA theories does not by itself justify large adverse fee awards.
What the member did
Appealed fee/cost awards and secured published limits on association fee-shifting when members sue under the Open Meeting Act rather than CC&R enforcement.
What did not work
OMA theories that director emails and certain executive sessions required open-meeting treatment—affirmed against the members.
Questions for the board
- Are board email threads about fines or plan approvals treated as board meetings under the OMA, and how is that documented?
- Before seeking fees after an OMA suit, has counsel confirmed the claim is actually a governing-documents action under § 5975?
- What written criteria would support calling a member OMA suit frivolous for § 4955(b) costs?
Questions for a lawyer
- Is this dispute framed as OMA-only, or mixed with CC&R enforcement that could reopen § 5975 fees?
- What record is needed to defeat a frivolousness finding for association costs under § 4955(b)?
- How should settlement account for published limits on association fee-shifting in OMA cases?
Citation
LNSU #1, LLC v. Alta Del Mar Coastal Collection Community Association, 94 Cal. App. 5th 1050 (2023); Nos. D080208, D081204 (2023-08-25). California Court of Appeal, Fourth District, Division One. Outcome chip: MIXED. Flags: MIXED, partial. Source: https://law.justia.com/cases/california/court-of-appeal/2023/d080208.html
_General information, not legal advice. Outcomes turn on facts and current law._
General information, not legal advice. Outcomes turn on facts and current law.