RIALTO-CAPITOL CONDOMINIUM ASSOCIATION, INC. VS. BALDWIN ASSETS ASSOCIATES URBAN RENEWAL COMPANY, LLC, ET AL. (L-4994-13. HUDSON COUNTY AND STATEWIDE) - Published

In this appeal, the court considered a condominium association's standing to sue defendants alleged to have been involved in the design, manufacture, and installation of the condominium's windows. The motion judge found the association lacked standing because the master deed declares without ambiguity that the windows are part of the units. The court agreed with that understanding of the master deed and the limits it places on the association's window claims, but the court also recognized that any claim against these defendants based on allegations that their actions altered the buildings' exterior appearance in a way that violated a historic preservation easement could be asserted because the association is bound by the easement and would have a sufficient stake in that claim's outcome. Additionally, the court rejected the motion judge's finding that the association was limited to suing only the unit owners for damages caused to the common elements; that determination is inconsistent with the nature of the association's relationship to the common elements and to the unit owners.