#82757
Jimmy-T
Keymaster

    As detailed in this post, you could put up a motion to a general meeting  or committee meeting that the committee or strata manager be instructed to pursue any owner for specific breaches of by-laws.

    If they fail to do so, Section 232(2)(e) of the Act allows owners to take action against the owners corporation (or committee) for “an exercise of, or failure to exercise, a function conferred or imposed by or under this Act or the by-laws of a strata scheme.”

    This is something you would have to pursue yourself or in conjunction with other aggrieved owners.  There are no StrataKops who will do this for you.

    That said, the simple act of applying for mediation as a precursor to an action under Section 232 would probably have a galvanising effect when the facts of strata life are laid out for all concerned.

    Meanwhile, Section 35 of the Act allows a simple majority of owners at a general meeting to remove a committee member from the committee.

    Section 45 of the Act allows a simple majority of committee members to sack an office-bearer by declaring an “office” vacant and electing a new member to fulfil that office (but they can remain as committee members).

    Section 238 of the Act empowers the Tribunal to remove a committee member at its discretion or at the request of an owner or owners.

    Bear in mind that any or all of these could have the effect of

    1. Making the owners and committee members aware of their responsibilities and

    2. A declaration of war.

    However, if the committee’s argument is that they don’t want to do anything because it might cost the scheme legal expense, that excuse evaporates as soon as you say “I’m taking you to the Tribunal anyway”. It’s the old argument of, do the right thing and get on with it, or  be forced to and pay the additional expenses of trying not to,  but have to do it anyway when you lose.

    If you want to be alerted when anyone replies to your posts or responds to this topic, please register and login, then you will be able to subscribe to the topic. The opinions offered in these Forum posts and replies are not intended to be taken as legal advice. Readers with serious issues should consult experienced strata lawyers. NB: Longer threads may spill over to additional pages - look for the numbers on the bottom right, under the last post.
    1 user thanked author for this post.