Hi Whale – thanks for your comments. 
And what about s157 of the SSMA for repealing by-laws that contradict the original strata plan and are not in the interests of all owners? s144 i thought applied only to common property…
And I believe that s158 may also be used to request exclusive use of common property. Unlike s144 where the onus of proof is on the lot owner to be ‘reasonable’, under s158 it falls to the body corporate to show they are not being ‘unreasonable’. but i’m no expert and i welcome correction on these two statements i’ve just made …
When i bought into the complex, there were no special by-laws in place and i acted based on what i read on the strata plan; so, if i understand what you are saying, a person can buy based on what is in the strata plan and then this can be over-ridden by the body corporate via by-laws.