› Flat Chat Strata Forum › Pets: Furry friends … or fiends? › Curious case of a cat and an iPhone photo › Current Page
The phrase “may not be reasonably refused” crops up in the standard or model by-laws but it is NOT law unless that by-law has been adopted by the scheme.
It is possible for an owners corporation to pass a by-law (especially at its first AGM) that excludes all pets (except assistance animals). If that by-law is there from day one, rejecting an application to have an animal is a “reasonable” refusal.
Where Owners Corps and executive committees get themselves into trouble is when they have the “not unreasonably refuse” by-law in place but then refuse all pets for fairly spurious reasons such as “we’ve never allowed them before”. That would probably be considered an unreasonable refusal as it doesn’t reflect the intent of the by-law.
By the way, there are people who abhor the idea of living in a building with animals under the same roof and they should be allowed to create their own little pet-free ghettos if they wish, provided it is made clear from the outset that those are the rules.