Legislation works to protect all
The strata and community title industry has received a strong message in regards to disputes and disputes resolution with the recent decision determined by the Queensland Supreme Court.
The outcome has been a very costly to owners and to all participants who began the management of the issue by reasoned negotiation and a detailed study of the concerns that had emerged. There is no doubt that this matter could have been resolved by the parties had the dispute procedures been allowed to be completed but, unfortunately, this was not allowed to proceed to reach a conclusion, before legal intervention was enacted.
The matter was essentially a house management issue which sought to implement a better and fairer maintenance process.
The 39-page judgement has spelt out the resolution of the matter but not before the body corporate manager, who also acted as a legal advisor, and the previous body corporate committee were dismissed by the owners of the complex, who also have costs awarded against them. We at ARAMA have pointed out that attacks on Queensland’s strata and community title legislation and its regulations have been dismissed by the Supreme Court decision.
The legislation that has been developed over the past 40 years clearly sets out in its 300 pages of the act, how the various parties can be reassured that the growing strata and community title industry provide fair and equitable management and responsibilities for all parties, especially for owners. Unfortunately for the committee, what it received was for the committee to frustrate and then terminate a 15-year landscape contract that had 12 years to run. Such advice is clearly contrary to any reasonable approach to community living and I believe we all have lessons learned from this case.
Queensland strata and community title legislation established over the past 40 years has been developed to enable the majority of matters to be clearly resolved by a proven course of dispute resolution. The legislation and its regulations have been developed to protect and foster the density living industry in Queensland.
The resident managers and the management rights industry roles are clearly defined in the legislation. Protection for owners is provided in the legislation when legitimate problems must be addressed.
It should be noted that the management rights industry has helped establish and consolidate Queensland’s tourism accommodation industry, with self catering accommodation providing a large proportion of holiday letting beds in Queensland. Thus in the recent Merrimac Heights dispute, the resident manager had entered into negotiations regarding the status of the three contracts under a management rights agreement prior to the termination of the resolution process and the need to commence legal action because of the advice to the body corporate committee by its then body corporate manager.
The resident managers defended their contracts and contract negations actions that have been successfully resolved in the judgement handed down in the Supreme Court. In his judgement Justice McMurdo indicated that the actions of the then body corporate committee and its then body corporate manager had been wrong. The continuing actions of the dismissed body corporate manager were in keeping with his previous alarmist strategies concerning property disputes that had been ruled against his actions. He allegedly continued to act on what he would like the legislation to provide rather than what parliament has decided.
It should be understood that for a number of years, the stakeholder groups, owners’ reps, bodies corporate managers, ARAMA and the senior officers from Fair Trading and BCCM meet regularly to discuss industry issues, legislation and regulations. Under the new legislative review system, parliamentary committees also hold public inquiries to receive submission to help in the framing of new legislation amendments and regulations that will flow from the amendments. The review system allows for all issues to be identified, reviewed and amended or added to better help in the smooth and open running of the strata and community title laws now and in the future.
Disputes allow for informal and then formal mediation and indeed ultimately to QCAT and the Supreme Court for those cases which cannot be resolved without judicator.
The ongoing public criticism by the one of the owners’ groups of the strata and community title legislation and its regulations concerning management rights cannot be sustained in the light of the recent judgement. The result involved significant compensation being awarded that was now the responsibility of the owners to meet along with a significant legal bill.
I remind all parties that qualified independent experts are available to advise owners and managers on all aspects of the management requirements and duties. This case clearly demonstrated the need to have available correct advice which had been the original course of resolution undertaken by the resident manager but negated by the advice of the then body corporate manager.
The management rights industry is an integral part of the structure of the community and strata title legislation and the industry it represents. Large, medium and small complexes require day-to-day professional management and, under management rights, this is delivered on a 24/7 basis
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