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An Owner… has leased his unit and … now maintains that his ownership entitles him to use of the pool and that the by-law would be unenforceable.
I’m neither a lawyer nor an expert either, but it strikes me that this is both a legal and moral question. That the owner is double-dipping (no pun intended) is beyond doubt. He wants to have his cake and eat it.
Legally, his ownership of the unit probably entitles him to access common property. But does it entitle him to use the facilities?
As we have discovered many times recently, the true power of by-laws is only established when they are tested and the way to test this is to enforce it and see what happens when you get to NCAT to have a fine imposed on the owner for ignoring a Notice To Comply.
Alternatively, if there is electronic access to the pool area, you could cancel the owner’s spare key and let him take the committee to NCAT to have it reinstated (having established an alternative way for him to inspect common property should he need to do so).
Or is this just one arrogant, self-centred individual who might not like, for instance, seeing his name come up in the strata committee minutes every month when it is noted that he continues to ignore the by-laws despite repeated requests to cease and desist.
The question is, how much time, money and energy do you want to expend on this. After all, it’s only one extra body in the pool. And given the unpredictability of NCAT decisions, is it worth risking having the whole by-law, which is otherwise effective as a deterrent if nothing else, blown out of the water to put one owner back in his box?
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.
- This reply was modified 2 years, 8 months ago by .