Strata Law Articles, Updates and Recognition

The Neighbour From Smell

The Neighbour From Smell We have all heard about or had to deal with the neighbour from smell at some point in our life. You know the one I am talking about. From unpleasant cooking smells to cigarette smoke, barbecue smoke to pet urine in common areas and rubbish...

Noise Abatement Orders

Quite often residents living in strata schemes are unaware that their daily activities may cause a level of noise which another resident finds intolerable and/or offensive. Although by-law 1 (Noise) regulates noise in a strata scheme and an owners corporation can take...

Adverse Possession of Common Property – Can It Exist?

I am surprised by the number of lot owners who have approached me claiming that they have had possession and use of a specified part of common property for many years and believe it would be unjust or unfair in the circumstances for the owners corporation to remove...

Community Schemes Law Reforms in NSW

The NSW government has recently released its Position Paper outlining the reforms it proposes to make in relation to community scheme laws in NSW. According to the Position Paper, there are approximately 700 community schemes, 40 precinct schemes and 1,460...

Is Sufficient Compliance With Section 62 Good Enough?

Is Sufficient Compliance With Section 62 of the Strata Schemes Management Act 1996 Good Enough? There appears to be a body of supporters who take the view that Strata Schemes Adjudicators will usually decline to make orders under sections 138 and 62 of the Strata...

Proxy Farming in Strata

What is Proxy Farming? Proxy farming, also known as proxy harvesting or stacking votes, is a process where one or more owners in a scheme (the proxy farmer(s)) tell other owners in the scheme that their proxy form is required to either support a particular cause,...

Retrospective By-Law Approval

Quite frequently new owners in strata schemes are unaware of the requirement to obtain owners corporation approval pursuant to a by-law under section 65A and/or section 52 of the Strata Schemes Management Act 1996 ("SSMA") before starting their renovation works which...

Consumer Claims in NCAT

What Is A Consumer Claim? A consumer claim is defined under section 3A of the Consumer Claims Act 1998 (“CC Act”) and, for the purposes of the CC Act, it is: (a) a claim by a consumer for the payment of a specified sum of money, or (b) a claim by a consumer for the...

Neighbour Disputes Over Water Damage – What Can I Do?

The flow of surface water, water leakage, run-off damage and overflow from an adjoining property's drains, sewers or burst pipes can be a source of dispute between adjoining land owners including a health and safety risk. Disputes between neighbours over water run-off...

Supreme Court Declares By-Laws To Be Invalid

Noon v The Owners - Strata Plan No. 22422 [2014] NSWSC 1260 (16 September 2014) A recent Supreme Court of NSW decision is an important warning for owners corporations not to take short cuts when making by-laws otherwise they run the risk of court proceedings by future...

Online Strata By-Law Application Form

You spoke. We listened. We are the 1st strata law firm to offer an Online Strata By-Law Application Form on our website which provides our clients and potential clients a more user friendly experience in completing by-law requests.

Solicitors Attending EGM’s On Behalf Of Their Clients

There has been some controversy recently regarding whether or not an executive committee or chairperson are within their rights to disallow a solicitor, who is acting on behalf of their client lot owner(s) and is present at a general meeting of the owners corporation...