For condominiums created on or after January 1, 2009 (and older ones that opted into the full Act), Tenn. Code Ann. § 66-27-408 sets the meeting floor. The association must meet at least once a year. Special meetings can be called by the president, a majority of the board, or, the part boards forget, unit owners holding 20% of the votes, or any lower percentage the bylaws set. Notice of any meeting must go out no less than 10 and no more than 60 days ahead, and it must state the time, place, method of attendance, and the items on the agenda, including the general nature of any proposed amendment to the declaration or bylaws, any budget change, and any proposal to remove a director or officer. A vote taken on a matter the notice never disclosed is vulnerable on its face.
Subdivision HOA owners work through the Nonprofit Corporation Act, and its tools are stronger than most owners expect. Under § 48-57-102, members holding at least 10% of the votes entitled to be cast on an issue can demand a special meeting in writing, and if the corporation fails to notice that meeting within one month, the demanding members may set the time and place themselves and give the notice. Under § 48-58-108, members may remove a director elected by them with or without cause (unless the charter requires cause), at a meeting called expressly for that purpose, where the votes to remove would have been enough to elect. Your covenants and bylaws supply the details; the corporate statute supplies the floor.
The removal play, done properly
Removing directors is where procedure decides everything. The meeting notice must state that removal is a purpose of the meeting; a removal vote sprung at a routine meeting fails. The vote must clear the same threshold that would elect the director, so count your community's voting structure before you start collecting signatures, cumulative voting and class structures change the math. And plan succession: a removal that leaves the board empty stalls the association and hands the narrative to the people you just removed. Line up replacement candidates and, where the bylaws allow, elect them at the same properly noticed meeting.
The authority
The statutes behind this
Cited by name as authority, for your own reading. Informational only, not legal advice.
Tenn. Code Ann. § 66-27-408
Condominium associations must meet annually; owners holding 20% of the votes (or a lower bylaw threshold) can force a special meeting; notice goes out 10-60 days ahead and must disclose the real agenda, including amendments, budget changes, and removal proposals.
Tenn. Code Ann. § 48-57-102
Members of a nonprofit corporation holding 10% of the votes on an issue can demand a special meeting in writing; if the corporation stalls past a month, the demanding members may set and notice the meeting themselves.
Tenn. Code Ann. § 48-58-108
Members may remove a member-elected director with or without cause (unless the charter requires cause), at a meeting called for that purpose, with votes sufficient to have elected the director.
Step by step
How to force a meeting and remove a board in Tennessee
The statutory path for Tennessee owners to compel a members' meeting and remove directors, in a condo or an HOA.
- 01
Count the demand threshold
Condo: 20% of the votes (or your bylaws' lower number) can call a special meeting under § 66-27-408. Nonprofit HOA: 10% of the votes entitled to be cast on the issue under § 48-57-102. Map your community's voting interests before collecting signatures.
- 02
Put the demand in writing
State the purpose precisely, including, if removal is the goal, that removal of named directors is a purpose of the meeting. Have each demanding owner sign and date, and deliver it to the secretary with proof.
- 03
Hold the association to the clock
For a nonprofit HOA, if the board doesn't notice the meeting within one month of an effective demand, the demanding members may set the time and place and send the notice themselves. That self-help provision is the statute's real teeth.
- 04
Get the notice right
Condo notices must go out 10-60 days ahead and state the agenda, including any removal proposal. A defective notice is the most common way a valid removal effort dies; treat the notice as the legal document it is.
- 05
Run the vote and seat successors
Clear the removal threshold (votes sufficient to have elected the director), document the count, and elect replacements at the same meeting where the bylaws allow, so the association never sits headless.
Straight answers
Common questions
Can Tennessee owners force a special meeting over the board's objection?
Yes. Condo owners holding 20% of the votes (or a lower bylaw threshold) can call one under § 66-27-408. In a nonprofit HOA, members with 10% of the votes can demand one, and if the board stalls past a month, the members may set and notice the meeting themselves under § 48-57-102.
Can we remove board members without proving misconduct?
Generally yes. Under § 48-58-108, members may remove a director they elected with or without cause, unless the charter says removal requires cause. The catch is procedural: the meeting must be called for that purpose and the removal vote must match what it took to elect.
How much notice must a condo association give before a meeting?
No less than 10 and no more than 60 days, and the notice must state the agenda, including the general nature of any proposed amendment, any budget change, and any proposal to remove a director or officer. Surprise votes on undisclosed items are challengeable.
My HOA's bylaws say nothing about member meetings. What fills the gap?
The Tennessee Nonprofit Corporation Act. Its default rules on member meetings, notice, quorum, and voting govern where the bylaws are silent, and its member rights, the 10% meeting demand and director removal, apply regardless of what the bylaws omit.