Published in Owners Corporation Law on 27th Aug 2014

But what if your OC or OC committee decides to paint all the window frames in your apartment complex “bright neon pink”? Does the OC have the power to do this? The short answer is “yes”, provided they overcome certain hurdles, and meet certain requirements. A recent VCAT case, namely Mowla v Owners Corporation PS5407083B [2014] VCAT 956 highlighted this issue. Facts Mr Mowla brought an application in relation to certain decisions made by the OC’s committee. One of those decisions was in relation to a border that separated his garden bed (which fell within his title) from an area of lawn (which was common property). The other properties in the development had the same configurat...

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Published in Owners Corporation Law on 5th Jun 2014

Mr Simpson came to see us after receiving a Notice from the Committee of the Owners Corporation that they had convened a meeting and resolved to strike a special levy of $1.4 million (“the Project Levy”), which was to be spread across blocks A, B and C.  His block C, which consisted of 20 lots, was to pay a Project Levy of approximately $500,000 to fund works and repairs. His contribution to the Project Levy alone was approximately $30,000. Mr Simpson was alarmed and contemplated applying for a loan in anticipation of paying the Project Levy. Instead, he came to see us to explore his legal options. We were able to advise that: the amount involved to raise the Project Levy was more...

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Published in Owners Corporation Law on 2nd May 2013

Background:  This was a case about balconies. The case concerned an application brought by the owner (“the Applicant”) of a unit that was part of a high-rise apartment building. The majority of units in the apartment building had balconies. However, the Applicant’s penthouse unit did not have a balcony.  It had come to the OC’s attention that:  the balustrading of the balconies were in poor condition and parts of it were at risk of being dislodged; and the balustrading did not comply with building regulation requirements and was designed like a ladder, making it easy for children to climb the horizontal bars.  The OC passed a special resolution to implement and fund a...

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Published in Owners Corporation Law on 3rd Mar 2013

A common challenge facing owners corporations and strata companies today is the difficulty in striking the right balance between ensuring the security of its members, and not breaching their rights to privacy. The implications of installing CCTV cameras in common areas such as foyer entrances, car parks and lift access areas are vast, and owners corporations and strata companies alike need to be diligent with respect to the implementation and use of such devices, to ensure they are not being used improperly. 1. Surveillance Devices Act 1999 (“the Act”) Section 7 of the Act provides that a person (which includes a body corporate) must not knowingly install, use or maintain an optical...

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Published in Owners Corporation Law on 17th Jan 2013

However, in the New South Wales case of Owners Corporation Strata Plan 61288 v Brookfield Multiplex [2012] NSWSC 1219 (“the Brookfield case”) the Owners Corporation plaintiff (“the OC”) was unable to sue a builder for alleged defective works contained in a serviced apartment scheme. This is because its contractual rights had expired (and the common law doctrine of privity applied), it did not have the benefit of the statutory warranties under the Home Building Act 1989 (“the NSW Act”), and the builder did not owe it a common law duty of care. Background The Brookfield case concerned a development of a serviced apartment complex. The registered proprietor and developer of the...

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