Code Attorney

I actually escaped the snow in Chicago this week by heading up to the Region III ICC conference in Minnesota where the weather was sunny.  I always have a great time at that extraordinary conference.  It was great to see that attendance was very healthy and maybe we’re beginning to see a thaw in some of the gloom we’ve all been dealing with since the economy tanked.  I taught Advanced Legal Aspects for Fire Code Inspectors and the inspectors asked a lot of good questions.  We had a healthy discussion about post-deprivation hearings after an emergency evacuation.  There’s quite a few cases now that make it clear that people (tenants and owners) who are deprived of their property rights in a building because of an emergency evacuation order,  have a right to be heard after the fact at such a hearing.  Most of the time no one actually appears at a hearing or files a notice appealing the order of the fire official.  But, in order to meet the requirements of the fourteenth amendment, they must be given the opportunity. By keeping an appropriate record of the hearing or appeal, the local jurisdiction can easily avoid a civil rights lawsuit for depriving an individual of his or her property without due process.

In Victorville, CA a lender decided to tear down new homes and other structures that hadn’t been completed to avoid future fines from the local government for code violations.

Officials of Guaranty Bank of Austin, Texas, which took over the development last year, were unavailable for comment. But Victorville city spokeswoman Yvonne Hester said the bank decided not to throw good money after bad.

“It just didn’t pencil out for them,” she said. “They’d have to spend a lot of money to turn around and sell the houses. They just made a financial decision to just demolish them.”

You can read the entire story in the L.A. Times at this address

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-demolish5-2009may05,0,4930126.story

Local governments frequently use fines as a way to motivate defendants to come into compliance with the code. Sometimes buildings have to be torn down if they’ve suffered too much damage from being open structures. But, this is the first time I’ve heard of tearing down brand new buildings as a way of coming into compliance with the local codes.

I spent the morning at the ICC offices in Country Club Hills filming a webinar on foreclosure issues for code officials called “Managing Distressed Properties for Code Officials”.  So far, it looks like it will be broadcast May 12, August 7, September 28, October 14, December 8.  This webinar will be one of the trainings offered to Chapters as a benefit. I was pretty happy that I came within about 2 minutes of the time given to me for the content since I’d never taught this class before.   I’m covering foreclosure procedure, how to search property records for ownership, using the I-Codes for enforcement, condemnation, administrative search warrants, dealing with servicing companies and identifying responsible parties.  I’ll be available to answer questions on the days of the broadcasts in the middle and at the end. I discuss special problems in different regions like burst pipes in cold temperatures that lead to mold and swimming pools in warmer climates that become West Nile breeding grounds. I hope you get a chance to see it on the web.  Here’s the link for more information: http://www.iccsafe.org/government/chapters/eTrainingWebinars.html

Mold after pipes burst in vacant house