Proxy farming & quorums

Is this in Victoria?

Tony Montana wrote:

as part of last December’s reforms, holding > 5% of votes by proxy isn’t allowed So will this make it harder to obtain a quorum at AGMs?

Theoretically, yes, as it will be hard to achieve the 50 per cent of voters or unit entitlements required to pass the thereshhold.

However, the meeting can still go ahead but the decisions taken will be “interim resolutions” and, under Section 78 (4) of the Owners Corporation Act must either be confirmed by another general meeting that is announced within 29 days.

OK, bear with me, the actual note in the Act says this:

The effect of subsection (4) is that an interim resolution cannot be acted on for 29 days after it is made but if notice of a special general meeting is given within that 29 day period, the interim resolution cannot be acted on until the resolution is confirmed at that meeting (which must be held within 28 days after the notice is given) or if the meeting is not held, until the end of that 28 day period.

Or, to put that in plain English, if the general meeting wasn’t quorate, the strata committee or strata manager has to set a date for a further meeting within the next 29 days to confirm the “interim resolutions”.

If the meeting is held and the resolutions are confirmed, then that’s all fine and dandy.  If the meeting is not held – for instance, you once again don’t get a quorum – then the interim resolutions pass anyway, 28 days after the date of the announcement of the meeting.

Special resolutions and resolutions requiring a unanimous vote can’t be passed in this way (as interim resolutions) so if you are trying to get a by-law established or changed, you’d better start working those numbers.