JEREMY T. ROBIN v. SUSAN DORAN and LINDA RICHELSON, as Trustees of the 5 MYRTLE STREET CONDOMINIUM TRUST

Plaintiff Jeremy Robin owns Unit A of the five-unit Five Myrtle Street Condominium in Boston. Unlike all the other owners, he does not reside in his unit. Instead, he rents it to tenants. At issue in this case are certain motions and bylaws adopted by the defendant 5 Myrtle Street Condominium Trust with regard to rentals and the plaintiff’s request for a declaration and order that the trustees “exercise reasonable judgment in approving or denying all future tenants in the condo building.” Complaint (Jan. 29, 2009). The defendants filed a motion to dismiss and the parties also submitted briefs in response to this court’s order of February 12, 2009.

For the reasons set forth in the court’s Memorandum and Order of this date, there are only two remaining issues in this case: the standard under the Master Deed by which tenant approvals must be judged and the validity and effect of the amendment to Bylaw Art. XIII making arbitration mandatory. For the reasons set forth in the court’s Memorandum and Order of this date, it is hereby ORDERED, ADJUDGED, and DECLARED that Master Deed § 8(d), unless and until amended, requires the condominium trustees to judge tenant applications in accordance with the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing. All such decisions must be rationally related to a legitimate concern and the condominium association’s requests for information and decisions regarding prospective tenants must be in writing. If a tenant is rejected, the condominium association must provide a clear articulation of the reasons for such rejection. Moreover, the time frame and procedures by which prospective tenants are evaluated must be reasonable and not used as pretexts for rejecting all tenants or for rejecting tenants based upon reasons not rationally related to legitimate concerns. Pursuant to Bylaw Art. XIII, all future disputes regarding “any decision of the Trustees or the Trust” related to tenant approvals (i.e., bylaws, rules, regulations, and the trustees’ decisions themselves), including whether or not they comply with this declaration, must be submitted to mandatory arbitration, reviewable in accordance with the provisions of G.L. c. 251, §§ 11-13. All other claims in this action are DISMISSED.

SO ORDERED.

By the court (Long, J.)