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Court: Condo Association Has the Right to Amend Bylaws to Bar Smoking Within Individual Units

By Jack Malley and Ken Jacobs
November 30, 2014

In February 2014, our client, a Westchester County condominium association (the “Association”), amended its bylaws to bar smoking everywhere on the condominium property, including inside individual units (the “No Smoking Bylaw”). One unit owner (“Defendant”) continued to smoke in his unit despite the Association's demands that he comply with the No Smoking Bylaw. The Association retained us to enforce its rights under the Bylaw.

A Condominium's Bylaws May Restrict Conduct Within Units

While New York courts had previously ruled that second-hand smoke could constitute a nuisance that could be enjoined in particular cases, no court had decided whether a condominium association had the right to bar smoking in units based purely on the authority of the bylaw. In fact, we found just one relevant decision nationally, a 2005 Colorado decision that upheld a condominium declaration amendment barring smoking in units.

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