Part 13 Offences and proceedings

(1) The Secretary may, if the Secretary believes on reasonable grounds that an offence under this Act has been or may be committed, exercise the following powers to investigate the grounds for the belief—

(a) enter common property,

(b) enter a lot at a reasonable time on notice given to the occupier,

(c) if the strata scheme concerned is for part of a building, enter any lot in any part strata parcel that includes part of the building concerned and any other part of the building or its site at a reasonable time on notice given to the occupier of that lot or other part,

(d) request an owners corporation to provide information to the Secretary and allow the Secretary to inspect its records under Division 2 of Part 10.

(2) When exercising a power under this section, the Secretary may, if the Secretary thinks fit, be accompanied by—

(a) a member of the strata committee of the owners corporation, or

(b) a member of the building management committee (if any) for the building, or

(c) the strata managing agent (if any) for the strata scheme.

(3) A person must not obstruct or hinder the Secretary, or a delegate of the Secretary, in the exercise of powers conferred by this section.

Maximum penalty—5 penalty units.

(4) An owners corporation must not fail to comply with a request under subsection (1) (d).

Maximum penalty—5 penalty units.

(5) No charge is payable by the Secretary in connection with a request made under subsection (1) (d).

Note.

The Secretary may delegate his or her functions under this Act (see section 257).

(1) An authorised officer may issue a penalty notice to a person if it appears to the officer that the person has committed a penalty notice offence.

(2) A penalty notice offence is an offence against this Act or the regulations that is prescribed by the regulations as a penalty notice offence.

(3) The Fines Act 1996 applies to a penalty notice issued under this section.

Note.

The Fines Act 1996 provides that, if a person issued with a penalty notice does not wish to have the matter determined by a court, the person may pay the amount specified in the notice and is not liable to any further proceedings for the alleged offence.

(4) The amount payable under a penalty notice issued under this section is the amount prescribed for the alleged offence by the regulations (not exceeding the maximum amount of penalty that could be imposed for the offence by a court).

(5) This section does not limit the operation of any other provision of, or made under, this or any other Act relating to proceedings that may be taken in respect of offences.

(6) In this section, authorised officer means a person employed in the Department authorised in writing by the Secretary as an authorised officer for the purposes of this section.

(1) A person who is guilty of an offence because the person contravenes a requirement made by or under this Act or the regulations (whether the requirement is imposed by a notice or otherwise) to do or cease to do something (whether or not within a specified period or before a particular time)—

(a) continues, until the requirement is complied with and despite the fact that any specified period has expired or time has passed, to be liable to comply with the requirement, and

(b) is guilty of a continuing offence for each day the contravention continues.

(2) This section does not apply to an offence if the relevant provision of this Act or the regulations does not provide for a penalty for a continuing offence.

(3) This section does not apply to the extent that a requirement of a notice is revoked.

(1) Proceedings for an offence under this Act or the regulations may be dealt with summarily before the Local Court or before the Supreme Court in its summary jurisdiction.

(2) The maximum monetary penalty that the Local Court may impose in proceedings for an offence under this Act or the regulations is the maximum penalty specified for that offence or 1,000 penalty units, whichever is the lesser.

In any proceedings for an offence against a provision of this Act or the regulations, the onus of proving that a person had a reasonable excuse (as referred to in the provision) lies with the defendant and must be proved on the balance of probabilities.

(1) Nothing in this Act derogates from any rights or remedies that an owner, mortgagee or chargee of a lot in a strata scheme or an owners corporation or covenant chargee may have in relation to any lot or common property apart from this Act.

(2) In any proceedings to enforce any such right or remedy, the court in which the proceedings are taken must order the plaintiff to pay the defendant’s costs if the court is of the opinion that, having regard to the subject-matter of the proceedings, the taking of the proceedings was not justified because this Act or the Community Land Management Act 2021 makes adequate provision for the enforcement of those rights or remedies.

(3) The defendant’s costs are to be as determined by the court.

(1) This section applies to proceedings in relation to common property.

(2) If the owners of the lots in a strata scheme are jointly entitled to take proceedings against any person or are liable to have proceedings taken against them jointly, the proceedings may be taken by or against the owners corporation.

(3) Any judgment or order given or made in favour of or against the owners corporation in any such proceedings has effect as if it were a judgment or order given or made in favour of or against the owners.

(4) A contribution required to be made by an owner of a lot to another owner in relation to the judgment debt is to bear the same proportion to the judgment debt as the unit entitlement of the contributing owner bears to the aggregate unit entitlement.

(1) An interested person may take proceedings for the rectification of the condition of a part of a building, or a part of the site of a building, if that condition affects or is likely to affect the support or shelter provided by that part to any other part of the building or its site.

(2) The proceedings may be taken only if—

(a) they could have been taken by an owner of a lot or by another person in whom is vested an estate in fee simple in a part of the building or its site, and

(b) they have not been taken by the owner or other person within a reasonable time.

(3) The proceedings are taken by an interested person as agent for the person who might have taken the proceedings and at the cost of the interested person.

(4) In this section, interested person means—

(a) the owners corporation for the strata scheme for the building or, if part of the building is included in a part strata parcel, of any strata scheme for part of the building, or

(b) the lessor, in the case of a leasehold strata scheme, or

(c) any person in whom is vested an estate in fee simple or, in the case of a leasehold strata scheme, a leasehold estate, registered under the Real Property Act 1900 in any part of the building or its site that is not included in a part strata parcel.