#58692
Quirky
Flatchatter

    I can see both sides of this issue. One party can commence legal action, even if they suspect the action wont be successful, and it is the action itself that is the penalty, and what causes the other party to submit. The stress, time and money involved in defending a legal action, even one you will probably win, is often sufficient to persuade you to go along with  whatever they want.

    The response to that strategy is to not engage with them. You do not have to pay for legal representation. You do not have to spend time and resources on defending the action. What you can do, is spend a half hour putting together a short explanation of your side of the argument, and just send that off at every opportunity. Something like,
    “I believe that by-law #4 “Keeping of Animals” is an invalid by-law because of S137B of the Strata Schemes Management Act, which states that a by-law like #4 “has no force or effect” because it unreasonably prohibits the keeping of an animal (in my case a dog) in a lot. Therefore, because there is no by-law in force about keeping animals, in this building, I will be keeping the animal, until the owners corporation adopts a valid by-law that covers the keeping of animals. My keeping of an animal will not cause any unreasonable interference with another occupant’s use of a lot or common property, as set out in Regualtion 36A, and so I believe that my keeping an animal even when a valid by-law is adopted, would still be permitted. ”

    Then send that off, in your own name, at every opportunity, to answer any lawyer’s letter, to any NCAT mediation or hearing, and submit it to any owners corporation meeting. Don’t pay for lawyers. Don’t attend hearings. Just do the minimum. If some loophole occurs that lets the other side succeed, then that will be years away, and in the meantime you will have had a pet with you. It is a principle of law that costs and so forth should be awarded fairly. If you spend $10 on your argument, for a few stamps and printing out of letters, and the other side spends $100,000, the court would not make you pay for their costs even if they win. And we know they wont win. The Courts and Tribunals are aware that people use money to influence the law, and don’t like that happening. So you need to be resolute, and not get sucked into the game. Don’t engage, don’t spend money, but do express your position briefly, clearly and whenever it helps.