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We would normally go through our Strata Manager to arrange Strata Committee voting, however this always seems to take too long to organize.
Is the SC able to hold a meeting and vote on motions without SM involvement to speed up proceedings? We have previous agendas and minutes to use as a template for the documentation format…so as long as we give 3 days notice to all committee members, place the agenda on the notice board, vote in a chairperson and follow the process (also using the SCA training as a guide), then we should be good to proceed (legally)? Are there any types of motions the SC cannot vote on (eg: authorizing legal costs to be represented at NCAT, as nobody has 2 hours to set aside during business hours)?
Just we’ve lost 3 weeks in getting notice to attend an NCAT hearing scheduled in 3.5 weeks time to make arrangements, so time is of the essence. Is it possible (and likely) that we can ask for an extension to the NCAT hearing?
Any advice appreciated.
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The committee does not need the involvement of the SM to call a SC meeting, nor for that matter any other meeting.
You seem to have the gist of what’s required to call a meeting. I just add that you need to display the meeting notice on the notice board, OR you need to send a notice to all owners.
The minutes need to be taken and published. There is no prescribed form of the minutes, so as long as it’s an accurate record, it’s fine.
And the committee can only resolve matters that are contained in the notice of meeting. You can discuss anything else but not make resolutions.
The secretary is the person who should send out the notices, but anyone can do it provided the secretary puts their name at the bottom.
Normally the Chairman of the OC runs the meeting. In their absence the members present can elect a chair for the meeting.
What you are suggesting is not unusual, and you should be commended for taking such action particularly where the SM is dragging the chain.
And the final word, the SM is not required to be at the meeting. Sometimes they want to be there just to collect their attendance fee (depends on your management contract).
This is an excellent post and reply, to an excellent question. Well done and thanks ‘kaindub’ and ‘azaghul’.
At our Sydney strata, you ask a committee member for something, however important or however simple, they tell you to go to the strata manager.
You go to the strata manager who says he can only do what the committee tells them to do. so nothing gets done. Must be similar to a Catch 22 situation.
Must be similar to a Catch 22 situation.
Nah, in defence of Joseph Heller’s original concept, a Catch-22 situation would be where there was a rule that anyone who asked a question would be denied an answer because they’d had the temerity to ask a question.
If you recall, in Catch-22 airmen who applied to be repatriated on grounds of insanity were refused because asking to go home was a perfectly sane thing to do.
What you’ve describe is the Dance of the Too-Hard Baskets (aka “Ask Your Mother/Father”).
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.
Our committee gave up involving the strata manager in our meetings years ago. We just get on with organising meetings ourselves. We just send the minutes to the manager to keep with our our other records after we are done.
On rare occasions we might need to involve the manager if we think we will need their advice. Even then, we usually ask them questions ahead of the meeting rather than having them at the meeting or involved in the mechanics of calling a meeting.
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