Q Can a condo owner be elected president if they have a lien on their condo due to not paying some of the maintenance fees due to the association. Could this be construed as a conflict of interest?

—Curious Board Member

A “If there is no requirement for members to be in good standing to run for the board,” says attorney Marshall Dickler of Arlington Heights' Dickler, Kahn, Slowikowski & Zavell, Ltd., “in either the state statute or the association declaration or bylaws and a condo owner can run for and be elected to the board of directors and be voted into the position of president. Legally it would not be a conflict of interest.

“Once the individual is on the board if they fail to pay there is a perception that their action might be viewed as a breach of their fiduciary duty to the association. However, there is no case law on this point.”