Marshall & Wilson to Present at 2025 CAI National Law Seminar

Attorneys Adam Marshall and David Wilson of Law Firm Carolinas will be presenters and speakers at the Community Associations Institute (CAI) 2025 National Law Seminar. The annual seminar is put on by the College of Community Association Lawyers (CCAL) and is the premier legal event for community association lawyers and other industry professionals. Their topic is titled “Weathering the Storm: Getting Your Community Clients Through PR Nightmares.” Every attorney who works with community associations will at times have to help their clients navigate potential PR disasters—whether combatting false narratives, half-truths, & other misleading statements from a vocal minority or speaking … Continue reading

David Wilson Named CCAL Fellow

Congratulations to Law Firm Carolinas’ partner David Wilson, who has been named a Fellow in CAI’s College of Community Association Lawyers! The College, which was created in 1994, recognizes excellence in the practice of community association law. Of the thousands of attorneys who work with homeowner and condominium associations in the US, there are fewer than 200 current CCAL Fellows. As a past national CCAL President, I can say without reservation that David reflects the high standards of professionalism, professional involvement, and passion for community association law the CCAL designation was created to spotlight.​ David’s practice has been 100% HOA/condo law in both North … Continue reading

CAI’s Common Ground Article on Jim Slaughter

The most recent Common Ground from the Community Associations Institute includes an interview with Law Firm Carolinas’ partner Jim Slaughter following his Don Buck Award recognition. The article includes Jim’s thoughts on proposed HOA/condo legislation, what Board members and owners often forget about community associations, and the need for Board members and homeowners who appreciate their associations to better communicate that message.  The one-page article can be found at https://lsc-pagepro.mydigitalpublication.com/publication/?m=20613&i=819074&p=62&ver=html5.

Carole Albright Recognized as Leader in the Law

Carole Albright, Managing Partner of Law Firm Carolinas, has been recognized by NC Lawyers Weekly as a 2024 Leaders in the Law Honoree. The award recognizes legal professionals who have gone above and beyond in their profession through contributions to the practice of law as well as service to the broader community. Carole is a Board Certified Specialist in Family Law as well as a Certified Parenting Counselor and is past Chair of the Family Law Section of the Greensboro Bar Association. She co-chaired and helped organize and lead the Course Planning Committee of the NC Family Law Specialists for … Continue reading

Like to Use Emojis With Your Professional Contacts? Enjoy Your Lawsuit.

The use of emojis has become a daily form of communication without getting into a long telephone or text conversation.  It conveys, or attempts to convey, information to an intended recipient certain actions, feelings, thoughts or intended actions of the sender towards someone or something.  It can apply in private conversations or in mass communications such as social media platforms. What happens when the recipient of an emoji takes the meaning to be vastly different than the intention of the sender?  The ramifications of such a miscommunication can result in costly lawsuits and thousands of dollars in attorney’s fees as … Continue reading

Jim Slaughter Receives Lifetime Contribution Award for Association Work

Law Firm Carolinas’ partner Jim Slaughter received the Don Buck Lifetime Contribution Award at the recent 2024 Community Association Law Seminar in Las Vegas. The award recognizes attorneys who have demonstrated exceptional commitment to the community association industry. Jim is a past President of the national College of Community Association Lawyers as well as the North Carolina Chapter of the Community Associations Institute. He has written four books on association meeting procedure, including the recent Robert’s Rules of Order Fast Track. Here’s a recent announcement from the Community Associations Institute on the Award. Jim Slaughter presented with the Don Buck … Continue reading

Adoption Is Great . . . Except for Some

Adoption, for most people, is a time of celebration.  A time to welcome a child into their home and a time to expand their family.  It is a wonderful avenue to establish and solidify rights to a child outside of a child custody proceeding.  But what happens if a biological father, who would have wanted the child, did not know of a child’s existence prior to an adoption proceeding?  The answer is, as it is in most cases, it depends. North Carolina adoption statutes set out the mechanism regarding how adoptions take place, who can adopt, and most importantly, whose … Continue reading

Why Would You Need an Owner’s Title Insurance policy when buying a home?

And is it necessary? The home buying process can be a confusing and hectic experience, with some of the most complex decisions you might ever have to make in your lifetime. One of those decisions may be the choice of whether to purchase an owner’s title insurance policy. Click here for more information about the basics of title insurance. If you’re buying a house with a mortgage, the lender you choose will always require the purchase of a lender’s policy as a condition for the loan, but why would a homeowner also need their own policy? You might ask, if … Continue reading

5 Law Firm Carolinas Attorneys Recognized in The Best Lawyers in America

Five attorneys at Law Firm Carolinas have been named to the 2024 Edition of The Best Lawyers in America. Carole Albright, who is a Board Certified Specialist in Family Law, has been recognized in the practice of Family Law. Keith Black, who is a Board Certified Specialist in Family Law, has been recognized in the practices of Family Law and Family Law Mediation. Steven Black, who is a Board Certified Specialist in Residential Real Estate, has been recognized in the practice of Real Estate Law and Community Association (HOA and condo) Law. Jim Slaughter has been recognized in the practices … Continue reading

Meister, Slaughter & Marshall Recognized

Law Firm Carolinas Partner Adam Marshall was a presenter at the Community Association Institute’s (CAI) 2023 Annual Conference in Dallas, Texas. The conference was attended by over 2,600 community managers, homeowner board members, leaders and business partners from 44 states and 10 countries. Marshall and Augustus Shaw, IV, Esq. of Arizona, presented on “Navigating Board Officer Responsibilities and Avoiding Conflict.” Marshall was also recently appointed by the Greensboro City Council to the Greensboro ABC (Alcohol Beverage Control) Board. Marshall has previously served on the Greensboro Human Relations Commission and Greensboro Board of Adjustment as well as Chair of the Greensboro Zoning Commission and … Continue reading

Two Pending NC Bills Would Significantly Change Association Governance and Practice

Law Firm Carolinas partner Harmony Taylor serves on the NC Legislative Action Committee (NC-LAC), a committee of the Community Associations Institute. The NC-LAC monitors and makes recommendations on legislation that affects community associations, and its members talk with legislators on issues of concern to HOAs and condos. The NC-LAC has allowed the firm to share the following update on two proposals of interest. The legislature continues to consider a number of laws this session which would significantly impact community associations in North Carolina. HB 542 has been referred to the Committee on Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House. HB 551 … Continue reading

Conflicts of Interests: What Community Association Directors Should Know

Are you a director on your community association executive board?  If so, you may be wondering about conflicts of interest.  When do you as a board member have a conflict of interest? First, what is a conflict of interest?  The North Carolina Non-profit Act defines a conflict of interest transaction as “a transaction with the corporation in which a director of the corporation has a direct or indirect interest.”  A direct or indirect interest means that you have some personal interest in the transaction beyond your interest as a member of the Association.  Basically, the question is will you (or … Continue reading

Wilson Elected Chair of CAI’s South Carolina Legislative Action Committee

Law Firm Carolinas Partner David Wilson has been elected Chair of the South Carolina Legislative Action Committee (SC LAC). The SC LAC is a committee of the Community Associations Institute that monitors and influences legislation that impacts community associations, and its members talk with legislators on issues of concern to HOAs and condos. For more information on the activities of the SC LAC, visit the South Carolina Legislative Action Committee page.

Law Firm Carolinas Named to Fast 50 List

Law Firm Carolinas has been named by the Triad Business Journal to its “Fast 50 List,” which consists of the 50 fastest growing businesses in the Triad. It is the firm’s third recognition on the Fast 50 list. Managing Partner Carole Albright points to several examples of the firm’s growth over the past three years, including the purchase of a larger Charlotte office, renovations in the Greensboro office, and the opening of several new offices, for six total—Greensboro, Charlotte, Raleigh, Wilmington, Columbia (SC), and Greenville (SC). Partner Jon Raymer accepted the firm’s Fast 50 recognition at the Business Journal’s recognition … Continue reading

NC Bar Association Interview with Jim Slaughter

The NC Bar Association recently interviewed partner Jim Slaughter about association meetings, parliamentary procedure, Robert’s Rules of Order, and his two new books on meeting procedure. The article can be found in this month’s North Carolina Lawyer Magazine here:Parliamentary Procedure, Robert’s Rules, and Jim Slaughter: Award-Winning Author Discusses Two New Books and More. Jim is an attorney, Certified Professional Parliamentarian-Teacher, Professional Registered Parliamentarian,, and past President of the American College of Parliamentary Lawyers. He has written four books on meeting procedure, including Robert’s Rules of Order Fast Track and Notes and Comments on Robert’s Rules, Fourth Edition (with a new Fifth … Continue reading

Why Is My Main Motion Not in Order? 

While there are numerous reasons why any motion may not be in order, I will attempt to give some guidance on why your main motion would not be in order at a meeting. Main motions are the most common motions, and are how business is done at meetings. You are likely very familiar with these motion, though you probably do not refer to these motions as “main motion.” Motions to have the organization take some action are main motions. For example, common main motions are “I move to adopt the budget,” “I move to adopt resolution 1,” “I move to … Continue reading

Remote Online Notarization Coming (Again)!

With the passage of NC House Bill 776, North Carolina joins 37 other states in adopting rigorous RON (Remote Online Notarization) policies. This brings the end to end security measures and accurate closing procedures that lenders and other industry stakeholders demand, while offering the convenience and safety customers desire. The process revolves around the software platform, one of the most common being Pavaso. This swiss-army knife solution combines the teleconferencing abilities of Zoom with document management and signing capabilities of Docusign and adds encryption and recordkeeping and identification verification. This special suite of tools works together to solve the hardest … Continue reading

Is it “safe” for community associations to allow food trucks on common areas?

Food trucks are very on trend right now, and many homeowner and condominium associations are considering inviting them to gatherings and community wide parties. Hopefully, boards think before they make a call and reach out to their attorney or manager to make sure that they are proceeding legally. Here are some thoughts to consider when choosing when or how to invite a food truck to your next community event. First, boards generally have the right to decide whether or not to invite or allow food trucks on the common area. Common areas, such as pool decks, clubhouses, community parking lots … Continue reading

Nomination Procedures for Elections

If you are administering an election for your group or association, then you may have questions about how the nomination process works. Do you need to use an election committee? What are nominations from the floor? What about other methods of doing nominations? Fortunately, it’s not as difficult as it may seem. There are six different methods: (1) nominations by the chair, (2) nominations from the floor, (3) nominations by a committee, (4) nominations by ballot, (5) nominations by mail, and (6) nominations by petition.  Nominations by the Chair is when the Chair selects candidate(s) for a position.  Typically, this method is not … Continue reading