#29234
Jimmy-T
Keymaster

    I think it’s pretty clear that this election has not been conducted properly under the terms of the Act.

    Section 10,  2(b) says: “If a ballot for membership of the strata committee of an owners corporation is required, the person presiding … must provide each person present and entitled to vote at the meeting with a blank ballot paper for each vote the person is entitled to cast.”

    Section 3 (a) says: “For a vote to be valid, a ballot paper must be signed by the voter and completed by the voter’s writing on it … the names of the candidates (without repeating a name) for whom the voter desires to vote.”

    These conditions – taking the pre-printed voting paper out of the process – were introduced specifically to rule out the “donkey votes” or anyone being disadvantaged by being listed alphabetically or otherwise.

    I also wonder how many proxies your chairman had.  You’d need to have more than 40 units for them to have held more than one. 

    You can challenge this by seeking mediation at Fair Trading, demanding a fresh election then, failing that, via orders at NCAT under Section 24 (below).  Bear in mind, however, the Tribunal has the option not to issue the order if they feel the result would not have been any different even if the rules had been followed.

    24 ORDER INVALIDATING RESOLUTION OF OWNERS CORPORATION

    (1) The Tribunal may, on application by an owner or first mortgagee of a lot in a strata scheme, make an order invalidating any resolution of, or election held by, the persons present at a meeting of the owners corporation if the Tribunal considers that the provisions of this Act or the regulations have not been complied with in relation to the meeting.

    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.