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An engineers report identified water proofing problems which is causing black mould in my unit. In my opinion and other experts I have spoken to say that strats is refusing to fix the problem because of the cost and putting up red herrings. In the meantime the mould control grow. Strat refused mediation with fair trading. I am afraid of the cost of lawyers and the cost at NCAP. Other dodgy deals to numerous to list. Is there other ways to get help.
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We consulted a lawyer who said we had a good case and that the problem would be fixed. Unfortunately he has said it might cost up to $30,000. Is this about what it costs in others experience.
I recall being quoted $10-15,000 about 6 years ago. We ended up representing ourselves and were successful.
If your application is successful, you can ask NCAT to award costs to you. That should be part of your application. This is not guaranteed to happen. I don’t know what happens if the other side agree to fix the mould after you hired the lawyer.
You need to establish that Section 106 of SSMA 2015 has been breached. You need to prove the waterproofing problems are causing the mould in your lot. Your engineer’s report is needed. You need to show that you requested the repair and that the owners corporation declined your request.
As everyone else said, “it costs too much to fix” is not a valid reason for ignoring the problem. It could cost more money for the owners corporation if there is an order to pay your legal costs.
If you decide to pursue this yourself, you could ask the strata lawyer what other kinds of info they would gather when they put your case together. Then you could seek that information yourself.
At my Directions hearing, I was told to write a response in a document. There should be a table of contents, page numbers and an index. I think the index was overkill.
Depending on your evidence you can file with NCAT without a lawyer, especially as mediation didn’t resolve the issue.
We did, OC had lawyers (whom I wont name) charged owners a small fortune, but we won. The same lawyers are now earning good fees from the Strata Manager trying to reverse the licence cancellation by Fair Trading,
You need to get in contact with as many owners as possible to gain their support, so if/when the OC puts a motion forward to approve lawyers it gets voted down, then you are on a level playing field and if the basis for your claim is valid the tribunal will generally do the right thing.
Happy if you send me PM to give you some advice off line.
Why is it so difficult for owners in NSW to get their strata committee/owners corporation to repair damaged common property. At a recent General Meeting the owners, including the SC, of my strata complex voted no to repairing common property in my unit ie water damage and rainwater ponding. They have repaired other units.
Why do owners then have the long expensive battle to get these lawbreakers to abide by their mandatory duty to maintain and repair common property.
Can an owner get the work done and then send the bill to the OC or strata manager to approve payment?
Can an owner get the work done and then send the bill to the OC or strata manager to approve payment?
Only in an extreme emergency. The correct procedure is mediation at Fair Trading following by seeking orders at NCAT.
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What is the Directions hearing?
A directions hearing is an initial hearing before a tribunal member to work out what the dispute is, who’ll be appearing, how many witnesses and how long will it take. No decisions on the substance of the dispute will be made – it’s all procedural.
If a party doesn’t turn up at the directions hearing, they’re effectively handing their opponent a ‘win’.
As an owner, use the directions hearing to say you will be representing yourself and objecting strongly if the OC wants to be represented by a lawyer. NCAT defaults to self-representation and needs a reason for representation. If the OC persuades the member they can be represented, then say you would like that option but that you will then be seeking costs against the OC.
Go in there with a clear outline of your case, the evidence you will present, the witnesses you will call.
Don’t be hesitant about asking the member to assist you with the process.
At the end of the directions hearing, the member will issue ‘directions’ to the parties (hence the name!). These are legally binding orders: the applicant to submit their evidence by such-and-such a date; the respondent to submit theirs X days later; hearing to be held on this date etc. It might include orders to produce certain documents (e.g. if OC/SM has been withholding documents from you, you could ask the member to direct that they provide you with them).
Note that you can still get legal advice and assistance preparing your documents as a self-represented party. You just can’t have a lawyer speak on your behalf. I would encourage anyone going to NCAT to use a lawyer like this (I’m saying this as a successful litigant at NCAT – the 3-4 hours we paid our lawyer for were well worth it, and they were very happy to talk us through the process).
Hope this helps!
StrataChair, you suggest hiring a lawyer, but that is not always affordable or if affordable, often exceeds the damages sought. Take my case: at NCAT, self representing, I won orders for the OC to repair common property by a certain date. They failed to do so. To compel them, I needed to return to NCAT, pay to file again and if I decided to hire a lawyer, then I would be up for $$$$. There was no guarantee that I would even be awarded my filing costs (back from the other side), let alone the legal bill.
Why should an owner be forced to pay fees way out of line with the cost of the required repairs, which are obligatory for the OC to maintain?