March 19, 2024
Every lawsuit must have a rational objective in the form of one or more remedies the Court ought to award against the defendant. Civil remedies can include money damages, possession, or an injunction. However, sometimes the claimant is interested in having the rights or duties of the parties resolved for purposes of present or future dealings. Such rulings allow the controversy to be resolved without one party testing validity by breaching or waiting indefinitely for the opponent to breach whatever instrument or law is disputed. The legal name for this sort of remedy is a “Declaratory Judgment.”
Determination of the size and shape of rights is a reoccurring theme of community association controversies. The difference between being made whole in the wake of a breach versus declaration or rights regarding a legal instrument or statute can seem like an abstraction, because the former would seem to follow the latter. Yet, courts are sensitive to the concern that it is not their job to step in and take over the management of a board or committee. Thus, there may be important questions where the court’s ability to take active jurisdiction is not clear. Declaratory relief can provide a remedy where there may not be a clear breach but there nonetheless is a controversy that is ripe for decision.
Where an actual controversy exists, circuit courts “shall have power to make binding adjudications of right” in the form of declaratory judgments. Va. Code § 8.01-184. Under the English common law (which forms the basis of law in Virginia and almost every other state), declaratory relief was not something that was an option. It is a statutory innovation. The declaratory judgment statutes are remedial legislation enacted to remove the common law requirement of actual injury. Declaratory judgments are binding adjudications of the rights of the parties, guiding them in their future conduct together, relieving them of the risk of taking undirected action incident to their rights, which, without direction, would jeopardize their interests. However, the power to make a declaratory judgment will not be exercised where some other mode of proceeding is provided. Because the driving purpose behind declaratory judgments is to resolve disputes before a right is violated, where claims and rights asserted have fully matured, and the alleged wrongs have already been suffered, a declaratory judgment is not available (because one ought to be proceeding for breach of contract or statute, or some other theory).
In many cases it is not clear whether bringing a declaratory judgment in a complaint or counterclaim is necessary, because the court would like to have to make a finding or ruling answering such a question in the court of addressing other claims. In some cases, some other kind of offensive or defensive pleading fits better. Where granting declaratory judgment is duplicative of the relief already available to the claimant, courts may decline to exercise jurisdiction.
Some counterclaims for declaratory relief are better suited to be presented as pleas or affirmative defenses instead. A counterclaim is a cause of action which seeks affirmative relief, while an affirmative defense defeats the plaintiff’s cause of action by denial or confession and avoidance. In contrast, a counterclaim is a claim for relief asserted against an opposing party after an original claim has been made; especially, a defendant’s claim in opposition to or as a setoff against the plaintiff’s claim. One would expect Virginia state courts to be more permissive in terms of raising issues by counterclaim than their federal counterparts, where there are stricter pleading requirements.
Declaratory judgments with related injunctive relief are common remedies in cases involving community associations. In a 1997 Loudoun County Circuit Court case, Cornwell v. Main St. Village HOA, a homeowner brought a suit in equity for declaratory and injunctive relief, challenging the enforcement of a parking policy as ultra vires under the HOA’s governing instruments. The court entered an order granting a declaratory judgment that the policy was void as ultra vires and entered an injunction against enforcement of the void policy.
In a Chesterfield County Circuit Court case, Robins v. CMH Homes, a property owner counterclaimed against a person exercising architectural approval in a subdivision. The owner sought declaratory and injunctive relief. The homeowner argued that based on the covenants, architectural approval was being wrongfully withheld. The court granted declaratory and injunctive relief in favor of the owner.
In 2011, the Circuit Court of Fairfax County rejected a HOA’s demurrer to the propriety of declaratory relief in a HOA governance case. The Farran family sued Olde Belhaven HOA for violation of the POAA, NSCA, and its declaration, while asking for declaratory and injunctive relief. The Farrans disputed the HOA’s denial of their request to add a roof and deck and challenged mismanagement of reserves. The HOA demurred to the claim for declaratory judgment, arguing the alleged breaches already occurred. The Circuit Court overruled this ground to demurrer because the Farrans’ complaint focused on the interpretation of legal rights under multiple HOA documents and statutes for determinations necessary for the parties to understand how to operate in the future under the governing documents and state statutes.
In closing, bear in mind that while courts traditionally have been reluctant to grant equitable relief, the modern trend is to allow declaratory or injunctive relief to be sought, if the allegations can adequately be proven. The declaratory judgment statutes are supposed to make the courts more generous, not less so. Whether a homeowner has been sued by a HOA or is trying to evaluate whether to bring suit, declaratory relief ought to be considered.
Legal Authority:
Pure Presbyterian Church of Washington v. Grace of God Presbyterian Church, 296 Va. 42 (2018).
Liberty Mut. Ins. Co. v. Bishop, 211 Va. 414 (1970)
Bd. of Supervisors v. Hylton Enters., 216 Va. 582 (1976)
Godwin v. Bd. of Dirs. of Bay Point Assn, 82 Va. Cir. 215 (Norfolk 2011).
61A Am. Jur. 2d Pleading § 276.
Black’s Law Dictionary 451 (8th ed. 1999)
Cornwell v. Main St. Village HOA, 42 Va. Cir. 48 (Loudoun Jan. 16, 1997).
Robins v. CMH Homes, 103 Va. Cir. 8 (Chesterfield 2019).
Farran v. Olde Belhaven Towne Owners’ Assn, 83 Va. Cir. 286 (Fairfax Aug. 24, 2011).
