Shumaker, Loop & Kendrick, LLP

Community associations are governed by a complex—and, at times, arcane—set of statutes and administrative regulations. Members of Shumaker's Community Association practice group are skilled at navigating clients through this complex set of rules. For instance, we help developers draft and record declarations and by-laws. And we help community associations revise and amend those declarations and by-laws once they have been recorded.

We also help community associations enforce their governing documents. Our Community Association practice group has extensive experience litigating the interpretation and enforcement of the declarations, by-laws, and other governing documents, whether it is litigating disputes over the election of directors, obtaining injunctive relief against association members who are violating the Association’s restrictive covenants, recording and foreclosing claims of liens for unpaid assessments, or litigating the priority of those liens.

Finally, our firm uses this extensive litigation experience to counsel community associations on their day-to-day operations to avoid litigation in the future. Community associations frequently call on us to advise them on a variety of issues, such as how to conduct their elections, how to conduct their monthly and annual meetings (including whether the meetings may be audiotaped or videotaped), and whether the community association should implement certain policies (including restricting homeownership in a community by sexual offenders, requiring appropriate swimwear in a community pool, maintenance obligations by homeowner, ability to regulate satellite dishes). In essence, our community association clients treat our firm like we are their general counsel.

Below are links to the various rules governing community associations. If our firm can assist you in navigating these complicated rules, please feel free to contact any of the attorneys in our practice group.

Our Commitment to Diversity

Shumaker, Loop & Kendrick, LLP is committed to attracting, retaining, and promoting individuals of diverse backgrounds to ensure that our firm reflects the clients we represent and our values of inclusion.  We believe that embracing differences in ethnicity, race, sexual orientation, age, socio-economic status, religion, and other characteristics, helps us consider the full range of perspectives our clients face and the goals they seek to achieve, allowing us to provide more creative, insightful, and complete guidance and counsel.  By affirmatively embracing and appreciating those differences, we create a supportive working environment at Shumaker for all individuals of the firm.

Diversity in Action

Shumaker's commitment to diversity is reflected in the following measures:

1. Creation of a Diversity & Inclusion Committee to coordinate and direct our diversity initiatives. Our committee is made up of partners (including at least one member of the Firm’s management committee), associates and administrative personnel.
2. Recipient of the 2013 Gold Standard Certification by Women in Law Empowerment Forum, which is given only to firms that have demonstrated that women represent a meaningful percentage of their equity partners, are involved in the highest leadership positions and have meaningful representation in the ranks of the firm’s most highly compensated partners. Shumaker was one of only 42 firms in the country to have received this prestigious award in 2013.
3. Creation of Shumaker’s Women’s Leadership Initiative, a firm-sponsored group dedicated to promoting, developing and fostering the potential of our female attorneys, helping them to navigate a path to a successful and satisfying legal career at the Firm, and to serve as leaders within the legal and business communities.
4. Membership and active participation in organizations that support diversity initiatives in our communities. Such organizations include, without limitation, racial, ethnic, disability, gender/LGBT and age initiatives.
5. Diversity in our hiring, advancement and leadership practices, for attorneys as well as staff members, including our Summer Associate Program.
6. Annual participation in the Toledo Bar Association’s Minority Clerkship Program.
7. Annual participation in the Ohio State Bar Foundation Law and Leadership Program, a program to establish a pipeline into the legal profession for disadvantaged students from underserved schools.
8. Membership in Partners in Education, a program in which our employees serve as tutors and mentors and provide ongoing financial support to area schools and students in need.
9. Cultivation of leadership opportunities among all attorneys and staff, recognizing the importance and benefit of diversity in leadership.
10. Firm-wide participation in periodic diversity education seminars or training programs.
11. Informal programs implemented firm-wide to enhance our awareness and understanding of the importance and benefits of diversity among our workforce and promote inclusion.