Can an Association Administrator Be Sued Personally for Loss?

Administration, General Assembly and Liability

Prepared by: Constantinople

An association administrator is not automatically personally liable for all the association's financial problems. However, personal liability of governing-body members for their own fault may also arise. The duty breached, who performed or approved the transaction, whether actual loss occurred and the connection between them must be established. Missing expenditure documents, unauthorised payments and a risky activity producing less income than expected are not the same situation. Liability is assessed through the particular transaction.

Collect the constitution, resolution book, bank statements, expenditure documents, contracts, internal audit reports and administrators' terms of office. Explain the amount of the alleged loss and its supporting documents. If an administrator says they voted against the decision or that a transaction occurred without their knowledge, the records are examined. Transactions after a person's term ended are distinguished from earlier ones. If the general assembly granted a discharge, its scope, the information available and the claimant's capacity are examined separately; it is not assumed that every claim has ended in every case.

An association's claim must be distinguished from a member's personal claim. If the person who would represent the association is also the subject of the allegation, the conflict of interest must be resolved. Damages, removal from office and a possible criminal complaint are not interchangeable remedies. Lawful preservation of evidence is important, rather than spreading allegations on social media.