Committee ignored Motions submitted to AGM

My experience in NSW may be of interest. I cannot say it is applicable to QLD, you’ll need to establish that yourself.

1. A few years ago, a couple of months before a general meeting was scheduled, I emailed the strata manager with some motions, asking him to list them on the agenda for that meeting. (There is always a cut off date that strata managers claim they have, after which they argue they are busy preparing the agenda and any motion must have been submitted long before then. If a motion is submitted after the mysterious (and rarely advertised) cut off date, the strata manager will often say that such motions will be listed for the subsequent general meeting. This IMHO is baloney. Surely the cut off time is just before the agenda is sent out, not weeks before);

2. As expected, I had to chase him up several days later to confirm he received my motions;

3. He confirmed receipt and replied they will be listed in the agenda for the meeting;

4. Weeks passed and 7 days before the meeting the agenda arrived (i.e in the package called “Notice of Meeting”) with my motions not appearing;

5. I called him and asked what’s going on? He did not answer coherently;

6. I filed a complaint with Fair Trading against the strata manager (not the OC). I included a boat load of evidence;

7. I was told FT will consider it; FT will then call me to discuss; if they are satisfied with my case they will investigate the matter starting with asking the strata manager to offer evidence in his defence;

8. Weeks later I was called by FT and told that the strata manager’s evidence mirrored mine and that his actions in denying my motions being listed and then not listed was proof that he did not comply with what is expected of strata managers under the Property & Stock Agents’ Act (NSW) and accompanying Regulation. I was not told if he or his employer were fined, penalised or similar. Apparently the regulations prohibit FT from telling a complainant, even if FT upholds the complaint, what sanctions are put on the strata manager. My complaint was upheld;

9. Several days after FT called me telling me that they found him to be “non-compliant”, the strata manager emailed  the owners that he is terminating the contract and that email should be viewed as his 3 month notice of that.

Hopefully this helps.