licensing regime is not overly burdensome, and that managers with appropriate experience and credentials will be able to use that background to obtain licenses without the need for any burdensome training or testing.
Accordingly, we are hard at work preparing an alternative manager licensing bill and coordinating same with CAI National to ensure compliance with their policies.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR Matthew Z. Earle, Esq., chair of CAI’s New Jersey Legislative Action Committee (NJ LAC) is a partner with the law firm Kates, Nussman, Ellis, Farhi & Earle, LLP and concentrates his practice in the areas of community association law, real estate tax appeals, construction law, general equity, and commercial litigation before the state and federal courts of New York and New Jersey. He can be contacted via email at:
mearle@nklaw.com.
to comply if the injunction is lifted or further legal developments occur.
On Dec. 3, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas published a decision in the matter of Texas Top Cop Shop, Inc., et al. v. Garland, et al. issuing a preliminary nationwide injunction against the Corporate Transparency Act (Act).
The court granted Plaintiff’s request for a preliminary injunction, blocking the U.S. Department of Treasury from enforcing the act’s beneficial ownership information (BOI) reporting requirements.
In his opinion, Judge Amos L. Mazzant III grants the Plaintiff’s request to preliminary enjoin the Government from enforcing the Corporate Transparency Act and its Implementing Regulations, ruling that “Neither may be enforced, and reporting companies need not comply with the CTA’s January 1, 2025, BOI reporting deadline pending further order of the Court.”
CTA Temporarily Blocked
Nationwide UPDATE: On Dec. 5, the Government appealed this ruling to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. FinCEN issued guidance that “in light of a recent federal court order, reporting companies are not currently required to file beneficial ownership information with FinCEN and are not subject to liability if they fail to do so while the order remains in force. However, reporting companies may continue to voluntarily submit beneficial ownership information reports.”
This injunction is not a final ruling on the CTA’s constitutionality. This is a time of uncertainty, and community associations should stay informed, vigilant, and be prepared
1 8 JANUARY | FEBRUARY 2025
This preliminary injunction applies nationwide, halting enforcement and compliance of the Act’s beneficial ownership reporting requirements across the entire United States. CAI’s legal team believes the injunction applies to all community associations incorporated within the U.S.
CAI will continue its unwavering commitment to protecting the community association housing model and our members’ interests. We firmly believe the act’s requirements place an excessive burden on community associations, which operate differently from traditional corporations and small businesses. We will continue to pursue a full repeal of the act or exemption to protect the community association housing model as well as the privacy and personal information
of its volunteer leaders. This is good news today, but it isn’t the end of the story. Please continue to watch for messaging about any further developments by visiting
www.caionline.org/ CTA.
Plaintiffs in the Texas Top Cop Shop case made similar arguments to those made in CAI’s federal lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Treasury, Secretary Janet Yellen, and the director of the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. The plaintiffs argued the act was an overreach of Congress’s authority over the states, improperly compelling speech and contradicting the right of association guaranteed by the First Amendment and violating the Fourth Amendment by forcing the disclosure of private information. Judge Mazzant’s opinion cites arguments and rulings from CAI’s pending federal case in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia to substantiate his ruling.
For community association board members who have taken advice from industry professionals and already complied with the act’s reporting requirements, you have taken the responsible route. We recognize the situation is complex especially because we are so close to the reporting deadline. We continue to believe that exempting community associations from the act is in the best interests of CAI member communities.
For more information on CAI’s pending lawsuit, advocacy efforts, and the act’s impact on community associations, visit
www.caionline.org/CTA.
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48
