On December 23rd, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals issued a decision staying the nationwide injunction issued by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas earlier this month. This court order reinstates the deadline for filing beneficial ownership information for all community associations under the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA). A copy of the decision can be read here.
According to the Court’s decision, “The Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) obliges certain nonexempt companies to report the identity of their beneficial owners and applicants for incorporation. 31 U.S.C. § 5336. On December 3, 2024—less than one month before the crucial January 1, 2025 reporting deadline—the district court granted Plaintiffs-Appellees’ motion for a preliminary injunction and entered a nationwide injunction enjoining the CTA and the corresponding Reporting Rule. Id.; 31 C.F.R. § 1010.380. The district court concluded that both are unconstitutional and issued nationwide injunctions against each, despite no party requesting it do so, and despite every other court to have considered this issue tailoring relief to the parties before it or denying relief altogether.
“The government, Defendants-Appellants, filed an emergency motion with this court seeking a stay. Because the government has met its burden under Nken v. Holder, 556 U.S. 418 (2009), we GRANT its motion for a temporary stay of the district court’s order and injunction pending appeal.”
Given all the uncertainty and legal back-and-forth over the issue, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) has extended the filing deadline until January 13, 2025. While a case involving the National Small Business Administration (NSBA) remains pending in the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, as does the Community Associations Institute (CAI)’s case in the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, legal pros say that it’s unlikely that any decisions in those cases will impact the current filing deadline.
According to Braintree, Massachusetts-based law firm Allcock & Marcus, “The first version of the recently passed congressional spending bill contained a one-year extension of the CTA filing deadline, to January 1, 2026, but that version was trimmed down and the extension eliminated, after heavy criticism of the bill from President Elect Trump and Elon Musk.”
This reinstatement means that all condominium associations, “regardless of whether they are formed as a trust, corporation or unincorporated association,” must file their beneficial ownership statement before the January 13, 2025 deadline. “Failure to do so could result in a fine of $10,000 or imprisonment. No court decision exempts any of these types of condominiums from filing. To the contrary, CAI’s case in Virginia sought an injunction for all three types of entities and was denied.”
It’s strongly recommended that all boards work with their legal advisors to make sure that their CTA filing is complete, correct, and filed in a timely manner to avoid these potentially serious penalties. For more information, see FinCEN's press release on the decision.
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