He spent the next six weeks pursuing the 13 votes he would need to pass a bylaw change.
Most recently, Commonwealth REIT successfully defended in a Maryland court the adoption of a bylaw requiring arbitration of shareholder disputes.
In December, on safety grounds, a gated community in Lakewood Ranch, Florida, passed a bylaw banning street play.
"Because the addition of a restriction based on delinquent payments would alter the terms of these bylaws, a bylaw amendment would be necessary," Mr. Sladkus said.
Before this week, FINA did not have a bylaw expressly forbidding swimsuits that might aid speed, buoyancy and endurance.
When it does become a bylaw there could be a range of punishments available, including on-the-spot fines.
But he said that the W.B.C. did have a bylaw that prevented an immediate rematch between boxers.
The problem is not Maryland law, but that CommonWealth has a bylaw provision that requires all shareholder disputes to be arbitrated.
In 2008, for example, a bylaw change required that at least two directors be employed by REIT Management or involved in CommonWealth's day-to-day operations.
To my knowledge, no court has ever ruled on whether shareholders are required to arbitrate their claims through a bylaw amendment passed by a board but not shareholders.
