Fire Law Blog Fire Service and Public Safety Legal Issues Blog by Curt Varone
A Maryland court has been asked to appoint a receiver for a volunteer fire company that has lost its funding and recognition by the county. The receivership petition was filed last month in Washington County Circuit Court by two current and two former members of the Fairplay Volunteer Fire Department.
Earlier this year the Washington County Board of Commissioners voted to withhold the company’s funding and recognition in part over chronic problems with poor response to alarms. The Herald-Mail.com reported the company had a response rate of 26% over a five month period in 2012.
The lawsuit seeks to have one or more receivers appointed to oversee the company in order to prevent dissolution of its assets and re-establish fire protection activities. The plaintiffs are Douglas Moyers and Stephanie Clipp, both current members, and Mark Kopp and Cory Lescalleet, who were “abruptly and arbitrarily terminated” in 2008.
Attorney William Schildt who represents the plaintiffs was quoted in the Herald-Mail.com as saying “The Petitioners … believe very strongly that the company has ceased serving its historical purpose…. They believe that the persons who have been in exclusive control of the company for more than 20 years have not operated it for the members … who belong to the company to fight fires and protect the citizens of Fairplay. They are seeking to remedy this wrong through the judicial system.”
A receivership is a court ordered remedy that can be used in a variety of circumstances when there is a dispute over a business or property, particularly when there is a concern that the business or property may be lost or dissipated. It involves the appointment of a neutral party, a receiver, who takes control of the business or property and under the court’s jurisdiction manages (or is some cases liquidates) it in a way that protects the interests of all parties.
