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Can an Owners Corporation Repeal a Common Property Rights By-law Without Obtaining the Lot Owner’s Written Consent?
Introduction Does the owners corporation have the right to repeal a common property rights by-law granting exclusive use or special privileges over common property to a lot owner without obtaining the written consent of that owner? Common Property Rights Bylaws - What...
read moreNCAT says goodbye to damages claims, at least for now.
In the recent NCAT Appeal Panel decisions of The Owners – Strata Plan No 74835 v Pullicin; The Owners – Strata Plan No 80412 v Vickery [2020] NSWCATAP 5, the Appeal Panel held that the Tribunal or commonly known as "NCAT" does not have the power to order damages or...
read moreNSW’s Community Schemes Law Reforms
The NSW Government is seeking public feedback on the drafting of the Community Land Management Bill 2019 and the Community Land Development Bill 2019. The draft bills propose a complete rewrite of the community title schemes laws. The draft bills are aligned with the...
read moreGlenquarry Park Investments Pty Ltd v Hegyesi [2019] NSWSC 425
Background The proceedings concerned a strata title property at Point Piper NSW where lot owners were in dispute concerning the extent of works that should be carried out on the common property. For more than a decade, the majority lot owners wished to have the...
read moreCan an occupant be restricted from smoking in their own lot? Gisks v The Owners – Strata Plan No 6743
Background Between 2015 and 2017 the applicant lot owner constantly complained to the owners corporation about receiving second-hand tobacco smoke drift from a neighbouring lot 7. The smoke came into his living room and kitchen through windows and doors and in all of...
read moreOwners Corporation Strata Plan No 14172 v Cai [2019] NSWCATCD 56
The general order making power under section 232 of the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 does not empower the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal to make an order for an owners corporation to recover a debt. Background A tenant operated a coffee shop/sandwich bar...
read moreShih v The Owners – Strata Plan No 87879 [2019] NSWCATAP 263
NCAT does not have jurisdiction to award damages under s 106(5) of the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 Background The owners of a lot in a strata scheme filed an application in the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal ("NCAT") alleging that water had entered and...
read moreThe Road to Unreasonableness – What happens when an Owners Corporation Unreasonably refuses a By-law?
In the recent case of Capcelea v The Owners – Strata Plan No 48887 [2019] NSWCATCD 27, the Tribunal found that it was unreasonable for an owners corporation not to approve a lot owners by-law for work to a terrace area. The decision provides valuable insight into how...
read moreOwners Corporation Unable to Convince Supreme Court of NSW for Building Manager to Hand Over Contact Details of Owners Recorded on Strata Roll
Owners Corporation Unable to Convince Supreme Court of NSW for Building Manager to Hand Over Contact Details of Owners Recorded on Strata Roll Background The case of The Owners – Strata Plan No. 54026 v Phillipa Ternes [2019] NSWSC 1579 involved a mixed use building...
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