Strata Regulatory Watch
March 2022
Dear clients, friends and industry colleagues,
Welcome to our first newsletter of 2022 where we summarise any relevant changes to strata legislation around the country, important case law and interesting advice work that has come our way recently.
If there is anything in this newsletter of particular interest to your team, please get in touch. We'd be happy to send you more information or present it in more detail.
As we write this, our thoughts are with everyone affected by the floods in south-east Queensland and northern NSW. Stay safe everyone.
The NSW Strata Hub
We have reported details of the NSW Government’s “Strata Hub” in previous editions of this newsletter. Some draft regulations have now been published which outline the information to be reported on an annual basis to the Strata Hub, the costs and the proposed start date of 1 May 2022.
WA - Strata Managers annual return
The new strata titles legislation in WA that took effect from 1 May 2020 introduced the requirement for strata managers to lodge a periodic return to Landgate with general information about the schemes they manage. The first return is due by 31 March 2022. For more information on this requirement, including a link to the approved form, click the link below.
ACSL holds 17th annual conference
The 17th Annual ACSL Strata Law Conference was held over 3 half-days from the 16th to 18th February 2022. The conference was attended by over 80 delegates. Notable speakers included:
- The Hon. Justice Andrew Bell, President of the NSW Court of Appeal
- His Honour Judge KA Barlow QC of the District Court of Queensland
- Associate Professor Cathy Sherry of the University of NSW
- Dr Jemma Green, Co-Founder & Chairman of Powerledger
- Dr Nicole Johnston of Deakin University
- Dr Edward Ti of the Singapore Management University
- Dr Laura Crommelin of the University of NSW
- Colleagues from leading law firms in Australia and NZ
- Speakers from leading service providers including Macquarie Bank, Lannock Strata Finance and Kelly & Partners
The firm was well represented in the program. Michael Allen appeared as an advocate in a moot tribunal hearing. Tim Graham considered whether schemes around the country have a duty of ongoing compliance with the National Construction Code. Leila Idris presented a case study on the Queensland Supreme Court decision in Breeze Mr Pty Ltd v Body Corporate Bay Village Title Scheme 33127 [2021] QSC 263 which concerned the Body Corporate’s unsuccessful attempt to terminate a Management Agreement. Michelle Ang was a debater for the Affirmative team which successfully argued that more disclosure is needed for Off the Plan sales.
The Conference is the leading strata legal conference in the South East Asia region, thanks to its focus on education, training and insightful content delivered by true leaders in their field. The organising committee of the conference carefully selects the speakers and it is a policy of the College not to invite any paid sponsors to speak.
Nineteen of our partners and lawyers attended, under the watchful eye of ACSL's President, Mr Tim Graham.
Community Titles updates in NSW
Transition period for holding the first AGM
The new community land laws require an association to hold its first annual general meeting (FAGM) within two months of the initial period expiring. Failure to hold the meeting within two months puts the developer in breach of the Act and a penalty may be issued.
Many associations will find that their initial period ends immediately when the new laws commence on 1 December 2021.
To assist associations and developers to manage the transition, they will have extra time in which to hold the FAGM during the first six months after the new laws commence. If the initial period expires between 1 December 2021 and 1 April 2022, the FAGM must be held by 1 June 2022 at the latest.
The new s174 Information Certificate
On 1 December 2021, the community land laws in NSW were updated to modernise them and bring them more in line with strata title laws. There were a number of changes introduced, but two important ones for managers to take note of include the change from the old s26 certificate to the new s174 certificate. This approved form, which is predominately the same as the old s26 certificate but with a new layout and terminology, can be downloaded from the NSW Fair Trading web site. Here is a link to the reporting requirements pursuant to s174 of the Act.
Strata Titles updates in NSW
100% e-conveyancing
While it has been 5 months since NSW introduced the concept of "100% e-conveyancing", we thought you might like to know Certificates of Title became redundant in NSW from 1 October 2021 and paper lodgements are no longer possible. All your strata related dealings must now be carried out by a "Subscriber" (law firm or licenced conveyancer) and submitted via PEXA. These include:
- Consolidation and change of by-laws - form 15CH
- Termination of a strata scheme - form 15ST
- Order affecting a strata scheme - form 15SO
- Notice of conversion of a strata lot to common property - form 15CD
- Amendment of strata development contract - form 15SA
- Amendment of management statement - form 21CSM
STAFF ARTICLES
Strata litigation is a loathsome, offensive brute… Yet I can't look away
The rule of law is the cornerstone of fundamental human rights. From time to time, sadly, legal process and respect for decision-makers is attacked, and perhaps this devolution is disproportionately highly represented in tribunals whose remit is based on informality and self-represented litigants are not infrequent.
An article by Tim Graham, Partner.
Launch of the By-Law Builder platform
The team at BAGL are proud to announce the launch of our latest technology platform "By-Law Builder".
This system is free to join which enables owners, committee members and strata managers to:
- Set-up a property's by-laws in a digital format (free service)
- Once by-laws are set-up, email them, print them and download a PDF report (free service)
- Print a flyer for your noticeboard, reception counter or lift which has a unique QR code (free service)
- View a property's digital by-laws on a mobile phone by scanning a QR code (free service - try it out on the image above!)
- Order up to 20 individual by-laws for items such as apartment renovations, pets, regulating short-term letting, smoking, parking and more
- Prepare a complete set of by-laws for a new development before a property is registered - drafted by leading property lawyers Michael Allen, Gary Bugden and Professor Peter Butt
- Submit a request to have your by-laws reviewed by a lawyer
- Submit a request and uploaded documents to get a quote for consolidation work by a lawyer
- Order title searches and dealing numbers, and
- Upload all the documents we need to consolidate and register your by-laws via PEXA.
The system is currently live in NSW, with other jurisdictions to follow soon. If any strata managers are interested in getting us to create digital copies of your by-laws for the schemes you manage, or you would just like a tour of the system, please get in contact.
TEAM NEWS
Career opportunities
We are currently recruiting for the following roles at BAGL:
- Senior Development Lawyer (Associate & above) - NSW
- Commercial Litigation Lawyer (Solicitor & above) - QLD
- Licensed Conveyancer (at least 5 years project experience) - QLD
- Strata Lawyer (at least 3 PAE) - VIC
- Strata Lawyer (at least 3 PAE) - WA
- Accountant - QLD
If you are interested to know more about these roles, including details of our firm, clients and team culture, please contact us at info@bagl.com.au or David our CEO at david@bagl.com.au
New team members
We would like to welcome the following new team members to the BAGL family:
- Alissa Hammond - Paralegal - WA
- Ella Carangalan - Accounts Assistant - QLD
- Froilan Gajudo - .NET Developer - NSW
- Cristine Yu - Associate - QLD
- I-Ching Tseng - Senior Consultant - QLD
Get in Touch
If you have any questions in relation to this regulatory newsletter, or you would like to know more, please do not hesitate to contact a member of our team on 02 9199 1055, visit our web site or contact us via email at info@bagl.com.au
Disclaimer
Nothing in this newsletter is intended to be legal advice. You should seek legal advice tailored to your property's specific circumstances. The information in this newsletter and on our web site are of a general nature and is not intended to address the circumstances of any particular individual or entity. Although we endeavour to provide accurate and timely information, we do not guarantee that the information in this newsletter is accurate at the date it is received or that it will continue to be accurate in the future.
