Legal Question in Civil Litigation in California

I belong to a yacht club which has violated our by-laws to kick out one of our members. That member is on one of our racing crews and he was still allowed to come in as a guest. It was reported to me that at the most recent meeting of the board of directors a member accused him (without specifics in a letter to the board which was read at the meeting) of being a thief and barred from the premises under threat of being arrested for trespassing.

This member has been the subject of a campaign of rumor and innuendo for months. When the membership of the board of directors changed last November the first thing it did was to kick out this member. I am not sure what area of law this falls into. Defamation? Neither am I sure what can be done to help this man and his family. If the administration of the yacht club ignores the rules how can they be forced to abide by them?

Thank you


Asked on 2/11/11, 12:42 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Aaron Feldman Feldman Law Group

Court's give private Club's great leeway in managing their internal affairs; however, members are entitled to receive due process. In other words, the Club has to follow all of its' own rules before terminating a membership. Whether the Yacht Club acted properly would depend on a review of the by-laws and the specific facts.

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Answered on 3/09/11, 5:00 pm


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