## Facts

- A ten-year-old resident, Kristi Robinson, drowned in a swimming pool located within a condominium development.
- Kristi’s father, as administrator of her estate, filed a wrongful-death action asserting multiple counts.
- One count alleged seven individual members of the condominium association’s board of managers negligently failed to maintain the pool area in a reasonably safe condition and to implement adequate safety measures.
- The board members served without compensation.
- The condominium association was not incorporated under the Illinois General Not For Profit Corporation Act.
- The individual board members moved to dismiss, arguing (1) statutory immunity under the General Not For Profit Corporation Act and (2) that the Illinois Condominium Property Act barred personal negligence liability for acts within board duties.
- The trial court dismissed the negligence count against the individual board members, and the estate appealed.

## Issues

1. Whether statutory immunity for directors under the Illinois General Not For Profit Corporation Act applies to unpaid condominium board members when the association is not incorporated under that Act.
2. Whether the Illinois Condominium Property Act precludes personal negligence liability of individual condominium board members for acts or omissions within the scope of their official duties.

## Decision

- The appellate court reversed the dismissal of the negligence count against the individual board members and remanded.
- The court held the General Not For Profit Corporation Act’s immunity did not apply because the association was not organized under that Act.
- The court held the Condominium Property Act did not confer blanket immunity on individual board members for negligence in performing board responsibilities.
- The court allowed the plaintiff to proceed on ordinary negligence principles, leaving breach and causation for later proceedings.

## Legal Principles

- Statutory immunity provisions are limited to the persons and entities expressly covered by the statute; courts will not extend immunity based on functional similarity to covered entities.
- Director/officer immunity under the Illinois General Not For Profit Corporation Act applies only to corporations organized under that Act and their directors/officers.
- The Illinois Condominium Property Act does not, without explicit language, eliminate traditional tort remedies against individual board members.
- Individuals acting in an organizational or managerial role may incur personal tort liability for negligent acts or omissions absent a statutory or doctrinal immunity.

## Conclusion

The court reinstated negligence claims against individual condominium board members, holding that neither the General Not For Profit Corporation Act nor the Condominium Property Act provided immunity where the association was not incorporated under the not-for-profit statute and the Condominium Act contained no express personal-liability bar.


Robinson v. La Casa Grande Condo. Ass’n, 204 Ill. App. 3d 853, 562 N.E.2d 678 (Ill. App. Ct. 1990)