Deltawood Community Association v. Williford
Deltawood Cmty. Ass'n v. Williford, 313 Or. App. 401, 496 P.3d 650 (2021)
Per curiam reversal of partial summary judgment in an HOA assessment-lien foreclosure. The community association was organized in 1979 as "Snoozy's Hollow Property Owners Association" via articles of incorporation, a recorded declaration, and bylaws. In 1994 the articles were amended in compliance with ORS 65.437 voting requirements to rename the corporation "Deltawood Community Association," but the recorded declaration and bylaws were never amended to reflect the new name. The trial court held Deltawood was not the real party in interest because the 1979 declaration and bylaws still named Snoozy's Hollow and required a higher vote to amend. The Court of Appeals (DeHoog, P.J., per curiam) reversed: ORS 65.959(2)(b) gives planned-community declarations control over ORS Chapter 65 only when there is an actual conflict between them. No conflict exists between Chapter 65's articles-of-incorporation amendment procedure and the declaration's declaration-amendment procedure — they address different documents. The 1994 articles amendment was valid, Deltawood Community Association is the proper real party in interest, and the lien foreclosure proceeds. The remaining issues (defendant's affirmative defenses) were left for remand.
Controlling Oregon Court of Appeals authority on HOA corporate name changes via amendment to the articles of incorporation alone, and on the narrow reading of ORS 65.959(2)(b) — the planned community documents control only when they actually conflict with ORS Chapter 65, not when the two address different governance documents. Frequently relevant in HOA lien foreclosure when the association's corporate name has changed but recorded documents still bear the original name.