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The insistence by Strata Managers that owners pay for lawyers to draw up a by-law for each renovation seems to me to be a case of ‘jobs for the boys’ price gouging, since all the lawyers need to do in the majority of cases is cutting and pasting previously passed by-laws.

For example: I recently approached my Strata Manager with a major renovation by-law I had “drafted” – by which I mean I used the exact wording from one of half a dozen previously passed by-laws , but changed the lot number to my own. This is for a bathroom renovation. 

I was initially told by the Strata Manager that I could not draw up my own by-law, but had to use a solicitor. The Strata Manager then emailed the preferred solicitor, cc’d me in, and asked that a cost disclosure be sent to me. This was promptly done, and I was asked to sign agreeing to pay $700 to have the by-law drawn up.  

I contacted Fair Trading, who advised that it is not necessary to have a lawyer draw up the by-law. I conveyed this to the Strata Manager.  He then said that if I “insist” on drawing up the by-law myself, the Strata Committee would require their solicitor to review the by-law, and I would have to pay for that. How much? It would be about the same – $700.  The tone of the emails was disagreeable, to put it mildly.  

Reviewing my Strata’s by-laws, I noted that the vast majority of renovation by-laws for bathrooms are identical apart from the lot number. Surely this is something that can be made into a tick-a-box template  paid for by the Owners Corporation?

Then only owners seeking to do non-standard renovations would need to pay for a new by-law to be drawn up. Unfortunately all of the advice on this on the internet is put out there by lawyers – who clearly have a vested interest in convincing OCs that the approach is risky.  Is this something that Fair Trading could do?

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