Part 2 Management of units plans

The owners corporation for a units plan is responsible for managing the units plan.

Note An owners corporation may be helped by 1 or more of the following:

(a) the executive committee of the owners corporation;

(b) a manager engaged under s 50;

(c) a service contractor engaged under s 60.

(1) On the registration of a units plan, an owners corporation for the units plan is established under the name ‘The Owners—Units Plan No X ’.

(2) To remove any doubt, an owners corporation continued in existence under this Act is established under this section.

Note 1 An owners corporation in existence under the Unit Titles Act 2001 immediately before the commencement of s 150 (expired) is continued in existence as an owners corporation under that section.

Note 2 Establish includes constitute and continue in existence (see Legislation Act, dict, pt 1, def establish).

(3) In this section:

X means the number given to the units plan by the registrar-general on its registration.

(1) An owners corporation is a corporation.

(2) An owners corporation—

(a) has perpetual succession; and

(b) may have a common seal; and

(c) may sue and be sued in its corporate name.

An owners corporation must execute a document in 1 of the following ways:

(a) if the owners corporation has a common seal—by attaching the seal to the document—

(i) as authorised by a resolution of the owners corporation; and

(ii) with 2 executive members witnessing the attaching and signing the document as witnesses;

(b) without using a common seal—

(i) by 2 executive members, as authorised by a resolution of the owners corporation, signing the document; or

(ii) if a manager for the owners corporation is delegated this function—by the manager, as authorised by a resolution of the owners corporation, signing the document.

(1) The members of an owners corporation for a units plan are the owners of the units.

(2) If a unit is owned by 2 or more part-owners, each part-owner is a member of the owners corporation.

(1) This section applies if a unit is owned by 2 or more part-owners.

(2) The part-owners of the unit must, by written notice to the owners corporation, authorise an individual to represent them as their agent (the part-owners’ representative) for this Act.

(3) The part-owners’ representative must be one of the owners.

Note If a company is a part-owner of the unit, the company’s own representative may also be authorised as the part-owners’ representative (see s 14 (Company-owned units—functions of representatives)).

(4) The notice of authorisation must—

(a) be given to the owners corporation within 14 days after the lodgment for registration of the instrument under which the unit first becomes owned by the part-owners; and

(b) include the full name and an address for correspondence of the representative; and

(c) be signed by each part-owner of the unit.

(5) The part-owners of the unit may change their representative by written notice to the owners corporation.

(6) The notice of change of authorisation must—

(a) include the full name and an address for correspondence of the new representative; and

(b) be signed by each part-owner of the unit.

(7) The part-owners’ representative may change the address for correspondence of the representative by written notice to the owners corporation.

(8) The notice of change of address must be signed by the representative.

(9) This section may be enforced in the same way as a rule of the owners corporation (see section 107 (Effect of rules)).

(1) This section applies if a unit is owned by 2 or more part-owners.

(2) Anything that an owner of the unit may do, or is required to do, under this Act may be done by the part-owners’ representative acting as the agent for the part-owners.

(3) Any document, including a notice, that this Act requires the owners corporation or someone else to give to the part-owners may be given to the representative alone on their behalf under section 124 (Service of documents on members, interested people and occupiers).

Note The owners corporation must give notice of a general meeting to the part-owners’ representative on behalf of the part-owners to comply with sch 3, s 3.6 (1) (a) (which requires notices to be given to each member of the owners corporation).

(4) If a document is given to the part-owners by being given to the representative on their behalf, the representative must tell the other part-owners that the document has been given to the representative and (if asked) give them a copy of the document.

(5) Subsection (4) may be enforced in the same way as a rule of the owners corporation (see section 107 (Effect of rules)).

Example—s (4) and s (5)

In breach of s (4), a part-owners’ representative for a unit does not tell a part-owner of the unit about a notice of a determination of general fund contribution (under s 78 (1)) given to the representative on the unit owners’ behalf.

The part-owner may rely on s (5) to enforce s (4) against the representative for the unit. The relevant enforcement action is the same as for a breach of the owners corporation rules—a civil action for breach of an agreement under seal (see s 107).

(1) This section applies if a company is the owner of a unit.

Note Owner includes a part-owner (see dict).

(2) The company must, by written notice to the owners corporation, authorise an individual to represent it as its agent (the company’s representative) for this Act.

(3) The company’s representative must be an officer or employee of the company.

(4) The notice of authorisation must—

(a) be given to the owners corporation within 14 days after the lodgment for registration of the instrument under which the company becomes an owner of the unit; and

(b) include the full name and an address for correspondence of the representative; and

(c) be signed on behalf of the company.

(5) The company may change its representative by written notice to the owners corporation.

(6) The notice of change of authorisation must—

(a) include the full name and an address for correspondence of the new representative; and

(b) be signed on behalf of the company.

(7) The company’s representative may change the address for correspondence of the representative by written notice to the owners corporation.

(8) The notice of change of address must be signed by the representative.

(9) This section may be enforced in the same way as a rule of the owners corporation (see section 107 (Effect of rules)).

(1) This section applies if a company is the owner of a unit.

(2) Anything that the company may do, or is required to do, under this Act may be done by the company’s representative acting as the agent for the company.

(3) Any document, including a notice, that this Act requires the owners corporation or someone else to give to the company may be given to the representative on its behalf under section 124 (Service of documents on members, interested people and occupiers).

Note The owners corporation must give notice of a general meeting to the company’s representative on behalf of the company to comply with sch 3, s 3.6 (1) (a) (which requires notices to be given to each member of the owners corporation).

Evidence of any of the following facts about a part-owners’ representative or a company’s representative may be given by a certificate executed by the executive committee:

(a) the fact that the authorisation of a named representative was in force on a stated date;

(b) the fact that a stated address for correspondence for a representative was the latest address for correspondence for the representative notified to the corporation on a stated date.