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Home > Frisco Fairways Homeowners Association v. Snell

Frisco Fairways Homeowners Association v. Snell [1]

Submitted by DMLP Staff on Fri, 04/18/2008 - 12:40

Summary

Threat Type: 

Lawsuit

Date: 

02/15/2008

Status: 

Concluded

Disposition: 

Settled (total)

Location: 

Texas

Verdict or Settlement Amount: 

N/A

Legal Claims: 

Defamation
Publication of Private Facts
In February 2008, the Frisco Fairways Homeowners Association filed a defamation suit against three homeowners after they posted critical comments about the association on an online community forum. According to the Dallas News, the lawsuit claims that Mr. Snell,... read full description
Parties

Party Receiving Legal Threat: 

David Snell; David Doumani; Doug Macari

Type of Party: 

Individual
Organization

Type of Party: 

Individual

Location of Party: 

  • Texas

Location of Party: 

  • Texas

Legal Counsel: 

Christopher A Payne

Legal Counsel: 

Charles W. Branham III; Andrew Messer; Michael C Witt
Description

In February 2008, the Frisco Fairways Homeowners Association filed a defamation suit against three homeowners after they posted critical comments about the association on an online community forum. According to the Dallas News [2], the lawsuit claims that Mr. Snell, Mr. Doumani, and Mr. Macari falsely stated or implied that the association's board had lied to members, engaged in questionable financial dealings, and acted unethically. The association claims that the homeowners also posted private information about members. The dispute apparently arose after the association required residents to cover up air conditioning units, pool equipment, and other items with bushes. News reports indicate that the case is expected to go to trial in April 2008.

Update:

5/1/2008 - Parties settled [3] the case.  As part of the settlement, the association agreed to post the settlement agreement on its website for no less than 30 days.

Related Links: 

  • Dallas News: Frisco homeowners association, residents in free speech fight [2]
  • Pegasus News: Frisco homeowners association feud spurs libel lawsuit [4]
  • American Homeowners Resource Center: HOA Residents in Free Speech Fight [5]
  • Denton Record-Chronicle: Judge sets trial date for Frisco Fairways libel suit [6]
  • David Snell's forum postings: 
    • To whom it may concern... [7], 
    • Last night I posted a very long post... [8] and 
    • Hello Frisco Fairways Residents... [9]
  • Star Community Newspapers: Frisco HOA drops libel suit against 3 homeowners [10] 
  • Forum posting announcing the Settlement Agreement [11] 
  • District Court Case Summary [12]
Details

Web Site(s) Involved: 

frisco-online.com [13]

Content Type: 

  • Text

Publication Medium: 

Forum

Subject Area: 

  • Defamation
  • Publication of Private Facts
  • Real Estate
Court Information & Documents

Jurisdiction: 

  • Texas

Source of Law: 

  • Texas

Court Name: 

393rd Judicial District Court, Denton County, Texas

Court Type: 

State

Case Number: 

2008-60050-393

Relevant Documents: 

PDF icon 2008-05-01-Frisco Fairways Settlement Agreement.pdf [14]
CMLP Information (Private)

CMLP Notes: 

Status updated on 6/4/2008 (AAB)

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Source URL (modified on 08/20/2014 - 11:06pm): https://www.dmlp.org/threats/frisco-fairways-homeowners-association-v-snell

Links
[1] https://www.dmlp.org/threats/frisco-fairways-homeowners-association-v-snell
[2] http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/city/collin/frisco/stories/032408dnmetfrhomesuit.39cd654.html
[3] https://www.dmlp.org/sites/citmedialaw.org/files/2008-05-01-Frisco%20Fairways%20Settlement%20Agreement.pdf
[4] http://www.pegasusnews.com/news/2008/mar/24/frisco-homeowners-association-feud-spurs-libel-law/
[5] http://www.ahrc.com/new/index.php/src/news/sub/article/action/ShowMedia/id/4354
[6] http://www.dentonrc.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/city/collin/frisco/stories/041008dnmetfriscofariways.499b214c.html
[7] http://www.frisco-online.com/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=42&threadid=164164
[8] http://www.frisco-online.com/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=42&threadid=164224
[9] http://www.frisco-online.com/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=42&threadid=167274
[10] http://www.scntx.com/articles/2008/05/07/breaking_news/16.txt
[11] http://www.frisco-online.com/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=42&threadid=175328&enterthread=y
[12] http://justice.dentoncounty.com/isapi/UVlink.isa/dentonco/WEBSERV/CivilSearch?action%253Dview%26track%253D529075
[13] http://frisco-online.com
[14] https://www.dmlp.org/sites/dmlp.org/files/sites/citmedialaw.org/files/2008-05-01-Frisco%20Fairways%20Settlement%20Agreement.pdf