The OC can bill a unit owner for an expense that is the ‘fault’ of the unit owner. However, the general meeting was called in response to a petition by >25% of owners, which is one of the mechanisms by which a general meeting can be called. So, the meeting has been called legitimately. I doubt it could be characterised as a ‘wilful or negligent act or omission’. I can’t see that meeting costs can be sheeted home to a subset of the unit owners.
The EC engaged those various professionals, presumably also not a ‘wilful or negligent act’. The EC can exercise functions of the OC, which includes getting professional advice and strategic planning. So, those would seem to be legitimate costs for the OC as a whole, so that ends up on levies for everyone ultimately.
As for ‘in the first instance’, I suspect that the EC is hoping that at least some of the OC’s costs will be recoverable from owner with the arrears. Failing to pay one’s levies and persisting in failing to pay, so much so that the OC needed to incur costs on professional advice on debt recovery, could be found to have been ‘wilful or negligent’.
s.31 from the UTMA:
Recovery of expenditure resulting from member or unit
occupier’s fault
This section applies if an owners corporation for a units plan has in carrying out its functions incurred an expense, or carried out work, that is necessary because of—
(a) a wilful or negligent act or omission of a member of the corporation, or an occupier of the member’s unit; or
(b) a breach of its rules by a member of the corporation, or an occupier of the member’s unit.
The amount spent or the cost of the work is recoverable by the owners corporation from the member as a debt.
If the owners corporation recovers an amount under subsection (2) from a member for an act, omission or breach of an occupier of the member’s unit, the member may recover the amount from the occupier as a debt.
In this section:
expense, includes a reasonable legal expense reasonably incurred, including a legal expense relating to a proceeding in the ACAT.
work, carried out by an owners corporation, means maintenance or anything else the corporation is authorised under this Act to do.