#63763
Jimmy-T
Keymaster

    1.How do I prove “not fair and equitable”, “against the weight of evidence”, ” a miscarriage of justice” without “rehashing” (wording of Member)?

    You almost certainly need a lawyer.  If you genuinely can’t afford one, then contact MLC.org.au/strata

    2.How do I avoid Costs being claimed against me by OC?

    Costs are supposed to be awarded in NCAT cases only in exceptional circumstances (read this guideline). These special conditions are:

    a) A party has conducted their case in a way that unnecessarily disadvantages another party
    b) A party has been responsible for unreasonably making the case take longer
    c) The relative strength of a party’s case or whether the case was hopeless
    d) The nature and complexity of the case
    e) A party’s case was frivolous, vexatious or misconceived
    f) A party has not cooperated with the Tribunal in providing a just, quick and cheap resolution of the real issues in dispute
    g) A party has not followed Tribunal orders or directions
    h) Any other matter the Tribunal thinks is relevant.

    Apart from (h) which is pretty much imponderable, just make sure you don’t fall into any of the above categories. Also, if you win, the OC has to raise a special levy, that excludes you, to pay their costs. But first you have to win.

    3. What points of Law should I be aware of. I’m just using the Act.

    There’s the Act – actually three Acts: Strata Management, Regulations and Development – and then there are legal interpretations and precedents. And then there’s the fact that Tribunal members just don’t like overturning previous verdicts if they don’t have to.

    I would not advise anyone to try to run their own case on appeal without specialised legal advice.  You’d be taking a butter knife to a gunfight. Unless you can get a strata lawyer to take the case on a contingency basis (unlikely), you’d be taking quite a gamble.

    Can anyone help?

    My advice would be to maybe let this one go through to the keeper then go for the low-hanging fruit among your (presumably) many complaints.  Pick them off one by one and that way you can build a case that the scheme is dysfunctional.  But that’s just my opinion and I am not a lawyer.

     

     

    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, 4 months ago by .