A Sussex condo board sued an owner for asking the county for flood money
A Sussex condo board sued an owner for asking the county for flood money
2026-08-13 · Delaware · Courts
A Sussex County condominium association asked the Delaware Court of Chancery to bar one of its own unit owners from requesting government funding for flood repairs and resiliency work. The owner sold her unit in April 2026 and the parties settled confidentially in May. No court ever ruled on the merits.
The reporting is by Maddy Lauria for Spotlight Delaware, in two pieces — March 12 and May 21, 2026.12
The community
Mallard Lakes sits in unincorporated Sussex County west of Fenwick Island: 477 units in 47 buildings on 61 acres, built between 1986 and 1992, on pilings less than ten feet above sea level.
What happened, as settled fact
The association filed suit in the Court of Chancery in autumn 2025, seeking an injunction barring a unit owner from requesting government funding or support for flood repairs and resiliency measures. A motion to dismiss was scheduled for April 2026. The owner sold her unit in April 2026, and the parties reached a confidential settlement in May.
What is allegation, not finding
We are careful here because the case settled without adjudication.
The board alleged the owner lacked authority to represent the community to officials, published “misinformation” on a website that could harm property values, committed fraud or misrepresentation in seeking public funding, and violated bylaws barring individuals from acting for the community.
The owner's counsel characterised the suit as an attempt to “limit her participation in the political process and stifle her First Amendment rights,” and argued her statements were core political speech protected by Delaware's Uniform Public Expression Protection Act — the state's anti-SLAPP law, enacted and strengthened in 2025.
The underlying conduct: a website researching flood risk; remarks at a July 2025 Sussex County Council meeting asking for $500,000 for watershed engineering studies; and correspondence with state and elected officials.
None of it was adjudicated.
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Related Delaware HOA Topics
- Maddy Lauria, “A condo owner asked the county for flooding help. Her HOA sued,” Spotlight Delaware, March 12, 2026 ↩
- Maddy Lauria, “Sussex HOA, resident settle lawsuit over flooding and speech,” Spotlight Delaware, May 21, 2026 ↩
- 25 Del. C. ch. 81, subch. III — §§ 81-303, 81-315, 81-324 (board duties, reserves, budget and special assessment ratification) ↩
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