Body Corporate FAQs
What is the role of a body corporate?
The body corporate has a statutory responsibility to keep common property in a good condition. It also must administer the affairs of the body corporate in a reasonable way.
There are a range of other statutory obligations set out in the Body Corporate and Community Management Act and the related regulation modules. The overriding obligation is to act reasonably.
A body corporate acts reasonably in two ways. The first is through owners at a general meeting. A general meeting is effectively a shareholder’s meeting of every lot owner which is required for certain decisions and certainly required every year to set budgets and the like. An example of a body corporate not acting reasonably at a general meeting can be read about here.
The other forum for acting reasonably is at committee level. The committee deals with all of the other day to day decisions for a body corporate. These can relate to approving people keeping pets in their units up to commencing proceedings against owners for recovery of levies and so on. Pet approvals are frequently litigated and you can read our articles on these here.
Additional Resource:
Frank Higginson and Chris Irons have created a video on “How to Guide for Committees to Make Better Decisions.” In their video, they share tips on how to lead a committee through the decision-making process, taking into account all of the different factors involved. If you’re looking for ways to improve the decision-making process in your body corporate, this video is a great place to start.
