Frances T. v. Village Green Owners Assn

In Frances T. v. Village Green Owners Assn. (1986) 42 Cal. 3d 490, 504 229 Cal. Rptr. 456, 723 P.2d 573, 59 A.L.R.4th 447, the Supreme Court determined that the directors of a condominium owners association could not be held liable as individuals unless they personally participated in a wrongful action. (Id. at pp. 503-506.) "Like any other citizen, corporate officers have a societal duty to refrain from acts that are unreasonably risky to third persons . . . ." (Id. at p. 506, fn. 12.) The Supreme Court set out the required allegations to state a tort cause of action against association directors in their individual capacities: "To maintain a tort claim against a director in his or her personal capacity, a plaintiff must first show that the director specifically authorized, directed or participated in the allegedly tortious conduct; or that although they specifically knew or reasonably should have known that some hazardous condition or activity under their control could injure plaintiff, they negligently failed to take or order appropriate action to avoid the harm citations. The plaintiff must also allege and prove that an ordinarily prudent person, knowing what the director knew at that time, would not have acted similarly under the circumstances." (Frances T., supra, 42 Cal. 3d at pp. 508-509.)