In a landmark ruling, NCAT has ordered an owners corporation to pay compensation to an owner for water damage to the owner’s unit caused by defects in the common property.

This ruling indicates that NCAT is able to resolve strata disputes by making compensation orders.

But has NCAT got it wrong? Read on to find out: NCAT Orders Owners Corporation to Pay Compensation

For NSW strata legal or levy collection advice please contact us here or call 02 9562 1266, we’re happy to assist.

Be aware that the deadline for owners corporations to review their by-laws under the new Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 is fast approaching with only 66 business days remaining.

The Act states that owners corporations have 12 months to review and register any current by-laws. This means every owners corporation must review their by-laws by the deadline of 30 November 2017.

For the next 66 business days, owners corporations that have not already done so are meant to consider whether to:

• Introduce new by-laws
• Amend any existing by-laws
• Repeal any by-laws

At JS Mueller & Co we have done hundreds of by-law reviews since the commencement of the new Act. We often recommend that new by-laws should be considered for the following topics:

• Airbnb
• Smoking
• Minor Renovations
• Major Renovations
• Common Property Memorandum
• Proxies
• Electronic Voting

Plan Ahead NOW. Don’t wait until it is too late.

Fixed Fee By-laws

Get your by-law review done now.We can review your by-laws in detail, suggest amendments to the existing by-laws and recommend new by-laws. We do all of that for a fixed fee. for your fixed fee by-laws.

Click here NOW for a fixed fee by-law review.

Template By-laws

We have developed a range of by-laws that cover various topics.

Order a copy of our by-law templates here NOW Strata By-law Templates

For strata legal or levy collection advice please contact us here or call 02 9562 1266, we’re happy to assist.

Can an owners corporation be forced to make modifications for disabled residents in its strata scheme?

Does it depend on the specific circumstances of each strata scheme?

Read on to find out: Strata Disabled Access

For strata legal or levy collection advice please contact us here or call 02 9562 1266, we’re happy to assist.

Does a strata committee have the power to make decisions on behalf of an owners corporation?

Should you save yourselves a vote next time a clause in a by-law or a condition in an agreement refers to the approval of the owners corporation?

To vote or not to vote read on to find out Strata Voting and Meetings

For strata legal or levy collection advice please contact us here or call 02 9562 1266, we’re happy to assist.

We all know an owners corporation must maintain and repair common property in its strata scheme.

However, what happens when an owner alters the common property without the consent of the owners corporation?

Does the owners corporation have to repair that common property?

Read on and find out who is responsible for repairing that common property? Strata Unauthorised Works

For strata legal or levy collection advice please contact us here or call 02 9562 1266, we’re happy to assist.

An NCAT decision allowing a lot owner to keep unauthorised renovations was recently overturned by the Supreme Court.

In doing so, the Court confirmed that an owners corporation must act unreasonably before NCAT should overturn a decision of an owners corporation not to allow an owner to keep unauthorised alterations to common property.

Read on to find out why Supreme Court Quashes NCAT Decision to Allow Unauthorised Works

For strata legal or levy collection advice please contact us here or call 02 9562 1266, we’re happy to assist.

The Supreme Court has ordered an owners corporation suing its former lawyers to give security for the costs the lawyers will incur defending the case and has halted the case until the owners corporation does so.

In Court cases, the loser is normally ordered to pay most of the winner’s costs.  But what happens if the eventual winner is fearful that the loser will not be able to pay its costs?

Is there anything the winner can do to halt the case before it incurs substantial costs fighting the case?

This decision is a game changer.  Read on to find out why… Owners Corporation Security Costs for Building Defects

For strata legal or levy collection advice please contact us here or call 02 9562 1266, we’re happy to assist.

Did you know that the information an owners corporation has about their owners can actually make it much simpler for us to act more effectively in recovering strata levies?

To assist you with the details that can help us, the team at JS Mueller & Co has developed a handy list of items for consideration when briefing your next strata levy debt recovery instruction:

1. If you know that the unit is tenanted but the address for service of notices is at the unit, let us know, particularly if you’re aware of whom the real estate agent is.
2. When advising your levy recovery person to enter Judgment and take the next step, the following information can greatly assist:

•  Details of where the lot owner works so JS Mueller & Co can organise to garnishee their wages – much cheaper and more effective than a Sheriff.
• Details of their motor vehicle type and registration number and a time they’re normally home – this will make it easier for the Sheriff to seize goods.

Historically when matters have been difficult to serve, the information an owners corporation has access to, can assist us greatly in a successful and quicker levy debt recovery.

Here are some examples of how information has assisted JS Mueller & Co in faster recovery of strata levies… who would have thought!

 Hockey Training

We’ve successfully served a guy with a Statement of Claim (SOC) at hockey training.  All because the owners corporation advised us that he rode his bike once a week to hockey training.

Pony Club

JS Mueller & Co was able to serve another woman at Pony Club when we were advised by an owner/occupier that she stored her Pony Club stuff in the garage.

So, you can see little pieces of information an owners corporation knows about a lot owner can provide us the little piece of magic we need to get a successful result.

Keep the list above in a handy place for when you next provide a levy debt recovery instruction.

Our levy collection service is available across regional and metropolitan NSW so let us know if you need any assistance with levy recoveries, we’d be happy to assist.

For NSW strata legal or levy collection advice please contact us here or call 02 9562 1266, we’re happy to assist.

Can an owners corporation shut down the lifts in its building to refurbish them?

If so, does the owners corporation have to pay compensation to owners and tenants who cannot access their apartments via the lifts during a lift refurbishment? And does a lift refurbishment need to be authorised by special resolution?

There are many thorny issues to navigate, to find out more Strata Building Lift Refurbishments

For NSW strata legal or levy collection advice please contact us here or call 02 9562 1266, we’re happy to assist.