HOUSING COOPERATIVES’ STATUTES AND THE QUEST FOR COOPERATIVE IDENTITY IN PUERTO RICO

A legal framework that accurately reflects the identity of housing cooperatives is crucial to address the issue of inadequate housing in financially struggling countries like Puerto Rico. However, the Puerto Rico Supreme Court decision in Rolling Hills Housing Cooperative v. Doris Colónhighlights the need for further action. In this case, the court examines whether a housing cooperative may resort to general eviction law to vacate a user-member who was in arrears in her monthly fees. The court states that housing cooperative by-laws shall not subvert the statutorily established process to vacate user-members. A housing cooperative that resorts to general eviction law operates like a capitalistic for-profit leasehold, contradicting its cooperative identity to the detriment of its user-members. Thus, Rolling Hills Housing Cooperative v. Doris Colónis a call to action to train housing cooperative leaders to uphold their cooperatives' identity in their operations.