What is a quorum, and why is it important? A quorum is the minimum number of members of a decision-making body necessary to conduct the business of that group. In Kentucky, the Condominium Act mandates that a quorum is only present in two situations:
- Unless the bylaws provide otherwise, a quorum is deemed present throughout any meeting of the association if persons entitled to cast ten percent (10%) of the votes which may be cast for election of the executive board are present in person or by proxy at the beginning of the meeting.
- Unless the bylaws specify a larger percentage, a quorum is deemed present throughout any meeting of the executive board if persons entitled to cast fifty percent (50%) of the votes on that board are present at the beginning of the meeting.[1]
If there are not enough members present to form a quorum, the important decisions cannot be made for the association, for example, removing or electing new board members. Rather, the meeting must be rescheduled. While the rescheduled meeting typically requires a lower quorum, the failure to form a quorum at the initial meeting may deter members from coming to the rescheduled meeting, making it even more difficult to reach quorum.
Fortunately, there are several ways to make meeting quorum easier. First, by utilizing proxies, a member can be “present” at a meeting without physically attending the meeting. By electing a proxy, a member assigns, in writing, his or her vote to another person who will be present at the meeting in his or her place. Proxies can be critical to achieving a quorum.
Second, condominium associations must set appropriate quorum percentages. Namely, larger associations should require a smaller quorum percentage because of the difficulties involved in ensuring the attendance of larger groups. Given that a quorum exists at a meeting where persons entitled to cast 10% of the votes are present, achieving quorum should be more manageable.
For any questions regarding condo associations, please contact DBL Law attorneys Justin Knappick (jknappick@dbllaw.com) or Katherine Simone (ksimone@dbllaw.com).
[1] KRS 381.9179.
