Charged with administering Florida’s laws regarding the Unauthorized Practice of Law, the Florida Supreme Court recently issued an opinion stating the following tasks must be performed by an attorney:
• draft a claim of lien and satisfaction of claim of lien;
• prepare a notice of commencement;
• determine the timing, method and form of giving notices of meetings;
• determine the votes necessary for certain actions by community associations;
• address questions asking for the application of a statute or rule;
• advise community associations whether a course of action is authorized by statute or rule;
• prepare a certificate of assessments due once a delinquent account is turned over to the association’s lawyer;
• prepare a certificate of assessments due once a foreclosure against the unit has commenced;
• prepare a certificate of assessments due once a member disputes in writing the amount owed;
• draft amendments (and certificates of amendment that are recorded in the official records) to declaration of covenants, bylaws and articles of incorporation when members have to vote on these documents;
• determine the number of days to be provided for statutory notice;
• modify limited-proxy forms promulgated by the state;
• prepare documents concerning the right of the association to approve new prospective owners;
• determine affirmative votes needed to pass a proposition or amendment to recorded documents;
• determine the number of owners’ votes needed to establish a quorum;
• draft pre-arbitration demand letters;
• prepare construction lien documents;
• prepare, review, draft and have substantial involvement in the preparation and execution of contracts, including construction, management and cable television contracts;
• identify, through the review of title instruments, the owners to receive pre-lien letters; and
• oversee any activity that requires statutory or case law analysis to reach a legal conclusion.
Full opinion available here sc13-889 .