› Flat Chat Strata Forum › NCAT – the NSW Tribunal › Let’s make a list of what you don’t like about the CTTT? › Current Page
There is a lot to not like about CTTT. One problem is best understood from the perspective of someone versed in a science.
In science the law is the law and the law does not get set aside based on discretion, equity, amenity or unfortunate circumstances. If the data is correct and the law is compromised then the law needs changing. The laws of science are meant to be universal; not situational.
The Strata Act gets shelved by CTTT and bodies such as the Supreme Court just so the organization can be seen to be “equitable”. I have read one Supreme Court strata case where there was a caretaker involved in a management role without authority, the Judge even stated that the caretaker was involved in unauthorized management but the Judge then drew some unspecified line in the sand between significant and insignificant management roles.
The decision involved the idea that the management role was insignificant – the Strata Act was being broken, that was not disputed by the Judge, but the degree of breach made it OK.
That is rubbish from the perspective of laws being laws. There is no such thing as a small breach in science; a small breach is huge because it compromises what is supposed to be a universal law.
In the Supreme Court matter I mention the Judge after acknowledging the breach should not have made the breach OK by creating some wishy-washy undefined line; the Judge should have resolved the matter by having the penalty reflect the degree of breach instead of compromising the Act.
Inconsistency in orders and rulings makes the law meaningless waffle, leads to the erosion of public trust in the law, leads to contempt for the overseeing bodies and in the case of strata matters it reduces consumer confidence in the worth of the concept of strata property title.
I am not saying everything is black and white but i could not disagree that too many times a simple black and white matter gets greyed because of discretion, equity, amenity or even idiocy.