Beth Vest, the Libertarian National Committee’s Region 7 Representative, has filed a derivative lawsuit against Chair Angela McArdle, accusing her of severe breaches of fiduciary duty and misconduct that Beth alleges threatens the integrity and operations of the national organization.
Vest announced the suit in a May 6 thread on the LNC’s public Business List, stating that members have a responsibility to “seek corrective action when they believe the board, or the chairman, has not acted in the best interest of the party.” The suit was filed on May 3 as a response to a letter sent to the Libertarian National Committee earlier in the year.
“I was going to write a somewhat wordy letter to send this along to the committee, however making a salient point is best served by brevity,” Vest wrote. “On that note, my narrative here is simple; the chair, often assisted by the majority of the committee, has broken our bylaws, and rules, and acted outside of the professional and ethical standards required of every non-profit board.”
The lawsuit alleges that McArdle engaged in actions detrimental to the organization, including mismanagement of assets, self-dealing, and undermining its mission. Central to the lawsuit are accusations of McArdle using her position for personal benefit and the misappropriation of funds, self-appointing to key roles without proper oversight, and hiring her life partner for an important fundraising role without a competitive process.
It further claims McArdle’s actions have led to decreased transparency and accountability within the national organization. It accuses her of excluding key members from decision-making processes, failing to maintain proper records, and interfering with the autonomy of state affiliates, contrary to party bylaws.
Vest’s suit seeks McArdle’s immediate suspension and removal based on violations outlined in D.C. Code § 29–411.01. Additionally, it seeks judicial enforcement for access to organizational records under D.C. Code § 29-413.02, which it claims is essential for assessing the scope of alleged financial misuses.
An original April 3 response from the LNC shows that it has defended McArdle against these accusations. Through Special Counsel Oliver Hall, the organization stated that it is under “no obligation to throw open its doors and allow anonymous parties to inspect and copy its records.” It further asserts that the law invoked by Vest has no application.
“Contrary to your assertion, your clients – whoever they may be – do not have “a right” to do so pursuant to D.C. Code § 29-413.02,” the letter reads. “Section 29-413.02 only confers that right upon members of a non-profit corporation. […] The LNC, however, is incorporated under the laws of the District of Columbia as a non-member corporation. Section 29-413.02 therefore has no application here.”
The LNC contends that the appropriate venue for addressing these issues is the upcoming national convention, rather than through litigation, which it says could further deplete party resources. The letter sent by Libertarian National Committee Special Counsel Oliver Hall can be read in full here.
Interestingly, Vest never actually cited what bylaw was being violated. She did claim that the Delaware situation involved McArdle. However, it happened in 2021; McArdle was first elected in 2022.
Still Curious:
For an Android phone, to select text to copy, tap and hold on one word, and it should be highlighted (in blue?) with a pair of teardrops, one at each end. You can then tap, hold, and drag those teardrops to expand the selection. A menu should pop up on the screen with an option to copy, and if it’s not visible on that menu, tap the three dots and the menu will expand and it should be there. That will copy the selection to your clipboard for later use. To paste, tap and hold in the text box where you want to paste, and another menu should appear, with the same expansion three dots. If you tap Paste, the last selection copied will be pasted, but if you select Clipboard, it will appear with selections to choose from. Simply find the one you want and tap it, and it will paste in.
A nice feature of Android (unlike Windows, don’t know about iOS) is that you can have multiple selections on the clipboard.
Hope that helps you.
There’s no such thing as right click on my phone. If there’s an equivalent, I have not found it. As for copy and paste, I’ve only found the ability to copy one word, one link, or the whole page. Nothing in between. Has anyone found what I’m missing there, or does it just not exist ? The problem is universal, not with any particular site.
Jordan,
There seem to be several normal page featured disabled on the site. The two I mostly notice are:
1) I can’t select and copy text; and
2) I can’t right-click. At all.
My main interest in the first problem is that sometimes I like to copy something to quote, either in a comment here or to promote the article/site elsewhere.
Hi Thomas,
We asked our host to look into why right-clicking has been disabled and are still awaiting more information. I also assume you were trying to open the link to the actual lawsuit. I’ve started setting links to open in new tabs after a few others mentioned it, but missed that one. It should be fixed.
Speaking of copy/paste, does anyone here know how to do it on a phone, for anything other than a single word or link or the entire page? I don’t just mean on this site, but any discussion anywhere. I haven’t found a way, and it’s been a while since I’ve had a desktop, laptop or any other way to get online besides a phone.
I use android and a variety of browsers, usually brave or chrome.
IPR would be much easier to use if copy/paste, open link in new tab, etc. weren’t disabled.
As a non-Libertarian, McAwful’s (the non-sister of Megan McAwful) response is funny as you know what. (Don’t know how much I need to bowdlerize, Jordan.)
Isn’t the LP’s answer on how to best keep any rogue individual or organization in check always: “Sue ’em”?
“I love the sound of petards hoisting in the morning.”
If the Chair has been violating the Bylaws, Policy Manual, or other Rules of Order, the first step to address it is to reconsider or move to rescind as appropriate within the LNC. The second step is to appeal to the Judicial Committee.
That second step has not happened. I can’t and won’t speak to the first step.
In fact, the number of appeals we have seen on the Judicial Committee since Reno is exactly one, by an affiliate of a state affiliate, and that one wasn’t within our jurisdiction (and we told them that) and they never bothered to put it into proper form, either.
It is highly unlikely that a court would take this case if all internal resolution processes are not exhausted first, and even then if that’s done, it’s still unlikely they would take it because those process were exhausted–and the timing on filing an appeal with the Judicial Committee at this point would take up to two weeks for the Judicial Committee to determine if a hearing is to be held, and if there is a hearing, there is no timeframe to schedule it. See the Judicial Committee Rules of Appellate Procedure for details.
But I’m no lawyer, don’t claim to be one (the Latin sucks!), this isn’t legal advice, etc. It’s just an opinion formed from observations of past issues.