All unit owners have the right to inspect, examine, and make copies of the following records in person or through an agent, at any reasonable time, at the association's principal office:

(1) the association's declaration, bylaws and plats of survey, and all amendments of these;

(2) the rules and regulations of the association:

(3) the articles of incorporation of the association and all amendments;

(4) minutes of all meetings of the members and the board for the past 7 years; and

(5) all current policies of insurance.

Requests to examine the records in paragraphs 1 through 5 above must be in writing and must state with particularity the records sought to be examined. The board must provide the requested materials within 30 days of receipt of the written request or it will be deemed a denial. A unit owner then may bring a lawsuit to compel examination of records and will be entitled to recover attorney's fees from the association.

All unit owners have the right to inspect, examine, and make copies of the following records in person or through an agent, at any reasonable time, at the association's principal office, but only for a proper purpose:

(6) all contracts, leases, and other agreements under which the association or the unit owners have obligations or liabilities;

(7) a current listing of the names, addresses, and weighted vote of all members entitled to vote;

(8) ballots and proxies related to ballot for all matters voted on by the members of the association during the immediately preceding 12 months, including but not limited to the election of members of the board of managers (if the association has rules authorizing election by secret ballots, then the board does not have to provide documents that would identify the person voting the ballot); and

(9) the books and records of account for the association's current and 10 immediately preceding fiscal years, including but not limited to itemized and detailed records of all receipts and expenditures.

Requests to examine the records in paragraphs 6 through 9 above must be in writing and must state with particularity the records sought to be examined. In addition, the request must state a proper purpose for the request. There are a number of court decisions related to shareholder rights which provide guidelines for what is a proper purpose. If the materials are not provided within 30 days of receipt of the request, it will be deemed a denial. The unit owner then may bring a lawsuit to compel examination of records, but the burden of proof will be upon the requesting party to demonstrate a proper purpose. If the court finds the association's denial of records in paragraphs 6 through 9 above was in bad faith, the court may award attorneys' fees in favor of the unit owner.

Despite the requirements set forth above, the following documents do not need to be disclosed except by court order:

1) documents relating to appointment, employment, discipline, or dismissal of association employees;

(2) documents relating to actions pending against or on behalf of the association or its board of managers in a court or administrative tribunal;

(3) documents relating to actions threatened against, or likely to be asserted on behalf of, the association or its board of managers in a court or administrative
tribunal;

(4) documents relating to common expenses or other charges owed by a member other than the requesting member; and

(5) documents provided to an association in connection with the lease, sale or other transfer of a unit by a member other than the requesting member.

The association may charge its actual costs for retrieving and making requested records available for inspection and examination and if copies of records are requested, the board may charge back the actual costs to the association of reproducing the records.