The three duties behind every task
- Duty of care: make informed decisions — get quotes, read the reserve study, take advice on anything legal.
- Duty of loyalty: act for the association, disclose conflicts, and step out of votes where you have an interest.
- Duty to act within authority: follow the declaration, the bylaws and applicable statute, including notice and voting rules.
President
- Sets the agenda and chairs meetings.
- Signs contracts the board has approved.
- Is the association's point of contact for vendors, insurers and counsel.
- Makes sure the other roles are actually being performed.
Treasurer
- Owns the budget cycle and the monthly financial statements.
- Oversees dues collection and the delinquency process.
- Keeps operating and reserve funds separate and reconciled.
- Coordinates the reserve study, the audit and the tax filing.
Secretary
- Issues notices within the deadlines the bylaws set.
- Takes and distributes minutes, and keeps the decisions log.
- Maintains the owner roster and the document archive.
- Handles owner records requests.
Members at large
Give them a defined portfolio rather than a vague seat: maintenance and vendor quotes, communications and the welcome pack, or the annual meeting logistics. Undefined roles are the ones that go unfilled.
What protects board members personally
- Directors-and-officers insurance, checked annually and sized to the association.
- Decisions taken at properly noticed meetings and recorded in minutes.
- Written policies applied consistently to every owner, including friends.
- Documented advice for anything legal, structural or financial.
Questions fréquentes
Are board members personally liable?
Generally no, provided they act in good faith, within their authority and with reasonable care. Directors-and-officers insurance covers the defence costs when an owner disagrees. Personal liability typically arises from self-dealing, fraud, or ignoring the governing documents.
Can a board member vote on a contract with their own company?
They must disclose the interest and, in most jurisdictions and most bylaws, abstain from the vote. Record both the disclosure and the abstention in the minutes.
How many board members should a small building have?
Three is the usual minimum and works well up to about thirty units — president, treasurer, secretary. Fewer than three concentrates too much in one person; more than five slows small decisions.