Code Of Conduct by Committee Members

@scotlandx said:
I can see where you are coming from Sir Humphrey but the by-laws apply to all the owners and residents, and govern the behaviour of the residents and common property.  Any code of conduct applies to the members of the Strata Committee in that capacity and therefore if you wanted one (although I don’t believe you should have one) you would need to keep it separate.

I am not sure I agree with this logic. All members of the OC are potential committee members (subject to being elected etc) so a code of conduct applies to all and any member if and whenever they happen to be on the SC/EC. I’d say this is not unlike a rule/bylaw that says something about what you can do on a balcony. It is general in that it applies to every unit that has a balcony. The generality is not negated just because in a particular OC there might be some units that don’t have balconies. 

In resolving to adopt (say) the ACT code of conduct, a general meeting of the owners would be instructing its committee at any time to operate a particular way. I would argue that the OC has the power to direct the SC/OC in any way that is not contrary to the Act or other legislation. I think it would also have the power to thereby make it a breach of the bylaws (an infringement of the rules in ACT-speak) to act contrary to the code it has adopted. That would enable a  clearly specified process to be brought into play (or at least threatened) if a committee or committee member behaved badly. 

I agree with Austman, the Victorian provision is succinct and summarises the duties of Strata Committee members.  I don’t know why they didn’t include something like that in the NSW legislation, they took long enough to produce it.  

The ACT code is not much longer:

Executive committees—code of conduct

1 Understanding of Act and code

An executive member must have—

(a)a commitment to acquiring an understanding of the Act, as relevant to the member’s role on the executive committee; and

(b)a good understanding of this code. 

2 Honesty and fairness

An executive member must act honestly and fairly in exercising the member’s functions as an executive member.

3 Care and diligence

An executive member must exercise reasonable care and diligence in exercising the member’s functions as an executive member.

4 Acting in owners corporation’s best interests

An executive member must act in the best interests of the owners corporation in exercising the member’s functions as an executive member, unless it is unlawful to do so.

5 Complying with Act and code

An executive member must take reasonable steps to ensure that the member complies with the Act, including this code, when exercising the member’s functions as an executive member.

6 Nuisance

An executive member must not—

(a)cause a nuisance on the land; and

(b)otherwise behave in a way that unreasonably affects a person’s lawful use or enjoyment of a unit or the common property.

7 Unconscionable conduct

An executive member must not engage in unconscionable conduct in exercising the member’s functions as an executive member.

Examples

1 improperly using the executive member’s position on the executive committee to gain, directly or indirectly, an advantage personally or for someone else

2 exerting undue influence on, or using unfair tactics against, the owner of a unit in the units plan

Note An example is part of the Act, is not exhaustive and may extend, but does not limit, the meaning of the provision in which it appears (see Legislation Act, s 126 and s 132).

8 Conflict of interest

An executive member must disclose to the executive committee any conflict of interest the member may have in a matter before the committee.

My contention is that one provision or another of the above would give a complainant something to hang their hat on if a committee member was behaving badly.