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Topic
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NSW.
Just recieved our AGM notice. (motions regarding committee attached)
The current committee members are the only committee nominees.
There is no facility to vote on individual committee nominees.
There was no call for any new nominee’s
I have been told, and am of the understanding that the elected of the committee CANNOT be undertaken if the meeting is held via electronic vote/paper form vote. Is this correct?
Is what they have done legal?
From past experience, it is clearly part of a concerted plan to exclude any new committee nominates and keeping the current members.
This isn’t valid surely?
What can be done?
AGM is due to be held last week in June.
- This topic was modified 6 months ago by .
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Replies
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Hi timSP,
The relevant part of the legislation is Schedule 1 to the Strata Schemes Management Act and the Strata Schemes Management Regulation. [not sure why but I can’t put a link to this here…]
You’re right. You can’t vote on the committee electronically. per s14A(a) of the Regulation: ‘an election must not be determined by pre-meeting electronic voting.’
The notice of meeting must include a call for nominations per s 5(1) of Schedule 1
A nomination may be made in writing before the meeting or orally at the meeting per s5(5).
This is reiterated in the Regulation s 9 and 10.
So decide your timing carefully. If there is a physical/electronic meeting at a particular time and place (as there needs to be to elect a committee) you could simply ensure you are there, nominate orally and point out that any pre-meeting electronic votes for the committee are invalid per the Regulation.
Note also that, per s9(e) of Sched 1 there must be a ‘…motion to decide the number of members of the strata committee’ as well as a motion for their election per s9(f).
Hope this helps! Good luck!
Would it be worth taking pre-emptive action at NCAT via a complaint and interim order?
The opinions offered in these Forum posts and replies are not intended to be taken as legal advice. Readers with serious issues should consult experienced strata lawyers.
@timSP,
Another suggestion: get a copy of the strata roll from your strata manager (and yes, the law requires them to give it to you) and write to other owners pointing out this is unlawful.
If you want to make it really stick, pay a lawyer to do this on your behalf.
Good luck!
Another suggestion: get a copy of the strata roll from your strata manager (and yes, the law requires them to give it to you) and write to other owners pointing out this is unlawful.
Expect to be told that since the strata manager is also the secretary (under certain circumstances) then the strata roll has already been provided. Also expect to be told that because of privacy concerns, you will not be given the email addresses of owners, even though they are an essential part of the roll.
Both of these arguments are total BS.
I had a huge fight with Netstrata over this at our investment property and, by the way. the strata commissioner declined to say who was right and wrong in this fight.
If the committee members are already playing fast and loose with the law, I would expect them to go to the barricades on this too. Apply for mediation at Fair Trading, seek an interim order and then see what falls out when you shake them up.
The opinions offered in these Forum posts and replies are not intended to be taken as legal advice. Readers with serious issues should consult experienced strata lawyers.
Just reading through the posts…timSP says the AGM is a ...”paper online vote”... so presumably this is not just a meeting decided by pre-meeting voting by email / mail etc but an actual ONLINE meeting.
I couldn’t see the copy of the Notice of Meeting but has the SM provided a Zoom / Teams link for the meeting ?
In any event you could ask for a link so as to attend and follow the advice of StrataChair….
“So decide your timing carefully. If there is a physical/electronic meeting at a particular time and place (as there needs to be to elect a committee) you could simply ensure you are there, nominate orally and point out that any pre-meeting electronic votes for the committee are invalid per the Regulation.”
I get the feeling that a lawyer’s letter, from an experienced strata lawyer, reminding the committee of their legal obligations, might work wonders here. Shouldn’t be too expensive and would make them realise the seriousness of their situation.
Failing that, if you could get something in writing out of Fair Trading, that might do the trick.
The opinions offered in these Forum posts and replies are not intended to be taken as legal advice. Readers with serious issues should consult experienced strata lawyers.
Just to clarify, there will be NO physical meeting, its “pre-meeting paper vote”. (even though a date and time is specified as the strata managers offices) but I say this is just a formality needed to include to say a “meeting” was held.
Then the election of the committee is invalid, according to the Strata Schemes Regulation
14A Pre-meeting electronic votingFor the Act, Schedule 1, clause 28(3) and Schedule 2, clause 10(3), the following applies in relation to voting by pre-meeting electronic voting—
(a) an election must not be determined by pre-meeting electronic voting,
The opinions offered in these Forum posts and replies are not intended to be taken as legal advice. Readers with serious issues should consult experienced strata lawyers.
The various Acts say the records of electronic voting must be retained and mad available to owners on request.
From the Regulations (sl-2016-501 (nsw.gov.au)_
41 Electronic voting records
(1)For the purposes of section 180 (1) (j) of the Act, records relating to electronic voting
for motions for resolutions by an owners corporation must be retained by an owners
corporation.
(2)For the purposes of section 180 (2) of the Act, the period for which an owners
corporation is required to retain voting papers under section 180 (1) (g) of the Act or
records referred to in subclause (1) is 13 months, if the voting papers or records relate
to secret ballots, unless the papers relate to the appointment of a strata renewal
committee or other decisions in connection with Part 10 of the Strata Schemes
Development Act 2015.
42 Inspection of records
For the purposes of section 182 (3) (k) of the Act, the owners corporation must make
available for inspection the accounting records and other records relating to the strata
scheme that are kept by the strata managing agent.You’ll find the relevant sections of the Act here: https://legislation.nsw.gov.au/view/html/inforce/current/act-2015-050#pt.10-div.2
The opinions offered in these Forum posts and replies are not intended to be taken as legal advice. Readers with serious issues should consult experienced strata lawyers.
this is very interesting reading thank you. In our scheme, the SM makes a blanket statement at the AGM via zoom, that the all male SC has agreed to stay on for another year so its never declared vacant and a call for nominations. nevertheless this SC between themselves get enough proxies to push through any other nominations . Women are not welcome ! Strata living is very tiresome and its easy to understand people wont get involved
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