Under the modern act, § 34-36.1-3.08(a) requires the association to hold a meeting at least once a year, and lets the president, a majority of the executive board, or unit owners holding at least twenty percent of the votes (or a lower percentage if the bylaws allow it) call a special meeting. That twenty-percent owner threshold has real teeth: if the stated purpose is to propose a declaration or bylaw amendment, reject the budget, or remove and replace a director or officer, the executive board must call the meeting once enough owners request it. Notice has to go out not less than ten and not more than sixty days before any meeting, hand-delivered or mailed, and it must state the time, place, and agenda, including the general nature of any proposed amendment, budget change, or removal proposal.
Quorum defaults come from § 34-36.1-3.09: unless the bylaws say otherwise, owners entitled to cast twenty percent of the votes for the executive board make a quorum for an association meeting, and fifty percent of the board's own votes make a quorum for a board meeting. If your bylaws are silent, those are the numbers that control, and a meeting or vote conducted without hitting them is vulnerable on that basis alone.
Electronic meetings, and the older act's silence on quorum
Section 34-36.1-3.08(c)-(e) lets the association hold regular, special, annual, or board meetings fully or partially by phone, video, or another interactive electronic process, regardless of what the declaration or bylaws say, as long as everyone can communicate simultaneously; that participation counts toward quorum and voting the same as being in the room. If a meeting includes an in-person component, it has to happen in the county where the condominium is located, and any notice for an electronic meeting has to separately identify the platform and how to access it. If you're under the older Condominium Ownership Act instead, none of this specificity exists: § 34-36-16(2) simply lets the bylaws set "the method of calling meetings" and "what percentage of the unit owners shall constitute a quorum," with no statutory default at all. Read your bylaws directly; the state isn't setting a floor for you.
The authority
The statutes behind this
Cited by name as authority, for your own reading. Informational only, not legal advice.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-36.1-3.08
Requires an annual association meeting, sets owner-petition and board triggers for special meetings, and governs meeting notice, including electronic meetings and electronic notice.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-36.1-3.09
Sets default quorum at twenty percent of votes for an association meeting and fifty percent of the executive board's votes for a board meeting, unless the bylaws specify otherwise.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 34-36-16
The older Condominium Ownership Act leaves meeting method and quorum percentage entirely to the bylaws, with no statutory default of its own.
Step by step
How to assert your meeting and voting rights in a Rhode Island condo
Steps to check notice, quorum, and your petition rights before a contested condo meeting or vote in Rhode Island.
- 01
Confirm your condo actually held its required annual meeting
Section 34-36.1-3.08(a) requires at least one association meeting per year. A board that's skipped it is already out of compliance before any other dispute even starts.
- 02
Check notice timing and content
Notice must go out ten to sixty days before the meeting and must state the time, place, and agenda, including the nature of any proposed amendment, budget change, or removal proposal, under § 34-36.1-3.08(a)-(b).
- 03
Do the quorum math before accepting a result
Absent different bylaws, twenty percent of the votes makes quorum for an association meeting and fifty percent of the board's votes makes quorum for a board meeting, under § 34-36.1-3.09.
- 04
Use the twenty-percent owner petition if you need a special meeting
If you and other owners holding at least twenty percent of the votes want to propose an amendment, reject the budget, or remove a director or officer, § 34-36.1-3.08(a) requires the executive board to call that meeting.
- 05
For older-act condos, go straight to your bylaws
Section 34-36-16(2) doesn't set a statutory quorum or meeting-method default; whatever percentage or process you have exists only because your bylaws say so. Read them before you assume a state floor protects you.
Straight answers
Common questions
Must a Rhode Island condo association hold an annual meeting?
Yes, if it's governed by the modern act. Section 34-36.1-3.08(a) requires at least one association meeting each year, plus a process for owners to force a special meeting for specific purposes.
Can owners force a special meeting in Rhode Island?
Yes. Under § 34-36.1-3.08(a), unit owners holding at least twenty percent of the votes (or a lower percentage the bylaws set) can require the executive board to call a special meeting, especially to propose an amendment, reject a budget, or remove a director or officer.
What counts as quorum for a Rhode Island condo meeting?
Unless the bylaws provide otherwise, § 34-36.1-3.09 sets quorum at twenty percent of the votes for an association meeting and fifty percent of the executive board's votes for a board meeting.
Can my condo association hold meetings entirely online?
Yes. Section 34-36.1-3.08(c)-(e) allows fully or partially electronic meetings regardless of what the declaration or bylaws say, as long as all participants can communicate simultaneously, and it counts toward quorum and voting.
Does the older Condominium Ownership Act set a quorum percentage?
No. Section 34-36-16(2) leaves the meeting method and the quorum percentage entirely to the bylaws, with no statutory default. If your condo predates 1982, check your bylaws directly for that number.