VIC: Q&A The AGM Agenda, Committee Meetings and Minutes

This article is about the Annual General Meeting in Victorian Owners Corporation.

Table of Contents:

• QUESTION: Can the owners corporation have AGMs that exclude lot owners from the voting process unless they physically attend?
• QUESTION: We have an OC manager but no chairperson, executive positions, or committee. Can I elect a chair? Do I call a special meeting of the owners to elect a chairperson, or wait until the AGM?
• QUESTION: I’ve just received minutes of the AGM showing yearly fees will increase from $2000 to $3000 annually. Only 50% of owners voted for the increase. Is a quorum of 80% required for the meeting to proceed?
• QUESTION: Our AGM is due very soon. We have not been notified of a date. We have received notification that we must submit committee nominations within two weeks. I thought nominations could be received up to the AGM.
• QUESTION: What are the consequences if AGM minutes are falsified?
• QUESTION: Should the minutes of the AGM include the Manager’s Report and the Committee Report?
• QUESTION: Is there a time frame for the minutes of a meeting to be signed by the Chair?
• QUESTION: Our small self managed strata scheme has not had an AGM for the past two years. What are the consequences of not having annual AGMs?

Question: Can the owners corporation have AGMs that exclude lot owners from the voting process unless they physically attend?

I’m trying to figure out how the owners corporation keeps getting away with AGMs that effectively exclude lot owners from voting if they cannot physically attend.

I know they can resolve to conduct the AGM by a show of hands, but they don’t make that resolution until the actual meeting.

There is no voting paper or ballot paper in the NOM that gets emailed around.

If a poll is called subject to s89(3), does that written vote have to be conducted outside the meeting and include all lot owners?

Answer: The Act sets out the way a meeting can be conducted, including voting, proxies, and attendance.

The Act sets out the way a meeting can be conducted, including voting, proxies, and attendance.

In short, a meeting can proceed without receiving votes from those who don’t attend. A significant number of meetings held often don’t achieve a quorum for the meeting and proceed by passing interim resolutions of the owners corporation. However, this mechanism does provide a window of opportunity for those who didn’t or couldn’t attend to petition for a Special General Meeting shortly after that to address any concerns or re-consider motions initially passed.

The prescribed proxy form enables a lot owner to nominate a representative to vote on their behalf at a meeting. You might not have a designated representative to attend for you on the day, so some owners will provide their proxy to the manager. This will help with numbers for a quorum or direct the manager to vote on certain matters. The Act also restricts a manager from voting on several matters, so you should check with them as to whether they can assist you with this process.

Some managers may also issue a voting paper for each motion with the proxy form that allows you to not only nominate the manager to vote for you but allows you to also direct them as to how you wish to vote for each motion. However, this additional voting paper is not required to be part of the meeting notice, so is rarely used.

If a poll is called, it is only relevant to that meeting and to those who attend. Polls do not get circulated to all lot owners of the owners corporation after the meeting seeking their input or vote. A poll is simply an alternative method of counting votes, where it switches to a calculation by lot entitlement rather than one vote per lot.

I recommend speaking with your manager about what options are available for members who find it difficult to attend. In recent years, a significant number of meetings have been held virtually, offering attendance to those unable to physically get there or who might live in another state. This could be an option if it has not already been considered.

Joel Chamberlain
Horizon Strata Management Group
E: joel.chamberlain@horizonstrata.com.au
P: 03 9687 7788

This post appears in the November 2024 edition of The VIC Strata Magazine.

Question: We have an OC manager but no chairperson, executive positions, or committee. Can I elect a chair? Do I call a special meeting of the owners to elect a chairperson, or wait until the AGM?

I’m a new owner in an 8-year-old 4-unit strata complex. We have an OC manager but no chairperson, executive positions, or committee. A new management contract has not been signed since 2020. The AGM was in January. The OC manager doesn’t seem very helpful or even trustworthy.

Can I elect a chair? If so, how? Do I call a special meeting of the owners to elect a chairperson, or do we have to wait until the AGM?

Answer: If you have 25% or more of lot entitlements, contact the OC manager and request a special general meeting.

Section 74 of the Owners Corporations Act 2006 stipulates that a lot owner with at least 25% of lot entitlements can convene a special general meeting.

You would have received a copy of the plan of subdivision when you purchased your property. This plan details the lot entitlement schedule, and it’s possible that each lot might not even have a 25% entitlement.

If you have 25% or more, contact the OC manager and request a special general meeting. If you have less than 25% of lot entitlement, you could ask one of your neighbours (assuming they are owner occupiers) to support your request. In this scenario, you could email your OC manager and cc the other owner, advising them to support your request to call the meeting.

In your email to the OC manager, you should explain to them what agenda items you would like added, which would include something like ‘To appoint a chairperson of the owners corporation’.

The OC manager should comply with your request. If they don’t or are making things difficult, you could contact a strata professional, like a strata consultant, for assistance.

Callum Wilson
The Strata Shepherd
E: info@thestratashepherd.com.au
P: 0431 925 908

This post appears in the May 2024 edition of The VIC Strata Magazine.

Question: I’ve just received minutes of the AGM showing yearly fees will increase from $2000 to $3000 annually. Only 50% of owners voted for the increase. Is a quorum of 80% required for the meeting to proceed?

Answer: To achieve a quorum at an AGM, the Act states that at least 50% of the total number of lots or 50% of the total lot entitlement must be present in person or by proxy.

No, to achieve a quorum at an AGM, Section 77 of the Owners Corporations Act 2006 states that at least 50% of the total number of lots or 50% of the total lot entitlement must be present in person or by proxy. You have stated that 50% of owners voted for the increase, so I will assume that a quorum was present at the AGM.

As the setting of annual fees is done at the AGM, the decision to increase the yearly fees from $2,000 per annum to $3,000 per annum could unlikely be challenged if a quorum has been achieved with at least half of the owners based on lot entitlements present at the meeting. In addition, if a majority of those present at the meeting voted in favour of the increase, in my view, the owners corporation has approved the fee increase.

Matthew Bourke
MBCM Strata Specialists
E: matthew@mbcmdoncaster.com.au
P: 03 9873 7366

This post appears in Strata News #674.

Question: Our AGM is due very soon. We have not been notified of a date. We have received notification that we must submit committee nominations within two weeks. I thought nominations could be received up to the AGM.

Answer: No section of the OC Act 2006 precludes an owner from nominating for the committee at the Annual General meeting from the floor.

Section 71(2) of the Owners Corporation Act 2006 lists the matters that must be dealt with at the Annual General Meeting, including the election of a committee if the owners corporation is to have a committee.

Section 100 of the OC Act 2006 states that an owners corporation affecting ten or more lots MUST elect a committee at each annual general meeting. An owners corporation affection less than ten lots MAY elect a committee at an annual general meeting.

Standard and best practice policy is for the OC Manager to issue the Notice of AGM, including the agenda, at least 21 days before the meeting. Section 72(1) of the OC Act 2006 states that notice in writing of the meeting must be sent at least 14 days before the meeting. This notice should include a committee nomination form.

No part of the OC Act 2006 precludes issuing the committee nomination form earlier than the 14 or 21 day period to give owners more time to consider their nomination and reasons for nominating for the committee. Similarly, no section of the OC Act 2006 precludes an owner from nominating for the committee at the Annual General meeting from the floor.

Ben Quirk
OccamStrata
E: ben.quirk@OccamStrata.com
P: 03 7045 3371

This post appears in the October 2023 edition of The VIC Strata Magazine.

Question: What are the consequences if AGM minutes are falsified?

Answer: If a falsification is identified and members resolve that it be corrected, it must be actioned and noted in the Minutes.

At each AGM, owners have the opportunity to object to wording of the previous AGM’s Minutes.

If a falsification is identified and members resolve that it be corrected, it must be actioned and noted in the Minutes. Failure to do so (presumably by the Manager) would likely be a breach of their duties however the actual consequence for this is unclear. A monetary penalty is unlikely unless it can be proven the Manager made a financial gain due to the falsification.

If a falsification is tabled but the majority of members agree to dismiss it, it would be very difficult to overturn it a higher level (such as VCAT) without firm proof (such as a recording of the meeting). If that proof was available and credible, the Owners Corporation itself may be in breach of its duties but, again, the consequences are not clear and unlikely to be significant unless there was some sort of malice involved.

It is therefore good practice to record meetings where possible to eliminate the potential for disputes regarding the accuracy of meeting minutes.

Callum Wilson
Bright & Duggan
E: callum.wilson@bright-duggan.com.au
P: 0427 339 980

This post appears in the November 2022 edition of The VIC Strata Magazine.

Question: Should the minutes of the AGM include the Manager’s Report and the Committee Report?

Should the minutes of the AGM include the Manager’s Report and the Committee Report even if they have been recently circulated to all owners? It’s not clear from my reading of the Act, but I think it may be important to have these included.

Answer: The AGM minutes should consist of the decisions made by the OC.

The AGM minutes should consist of the decisions made by the OC. That is the minimum legal requirement.

The OC could decided at the AGM to require that the chairperson and committee reports (Reports) are attached to the minutes. From our understanding, most owners corporations’ practice is to attach the Reports to the AGM notice which gives notice and information to the owners corporation members prior to attending the AGM.

Rochelle Castro
RC & Co Lawyers
E: law@rccolawyers.com
P: 1300 072 626

This post appears in Strata News #562.

Question: Is there a time frame for the minutes of a meeting to be signed by the Chair?

Is there a time frame after an AGM or Special Meeting for the minutes of the meeting to be signed by the Chairperson or should the minutes be signed at the next meeting after the resolution ‘To Accept the Minutes’ (with any amendments to the minutes) has been passed at the next meeting?

Answer: There is no requirement for the Chair’s signature.

The Owners Corporations Act 2006 is silent on whether minutes should be signed by a Chairperson. Therefore, there is no requirement for the Chair’s signature because the contents of the minutes will be reviewed and confirmed by the members at the next annual or special general meeting. Any amendments to the minutes would also be decided at the next general meeting.

Rochelle Castro
RC & Co Lawyers
E: law@rccolawyers.com
P: 1300 072 626

This post appears in Strata News #552.

Question: Our small self managed strata scheme has not had an AGM for the past two years. What are the consequences of not having annual AGMs?

We bought a villa unit about 4 years ago, the complex consists of 6 units. We don’t have a professional Owners Corporation Manager and haven’t had an annual general meeting for the past two years.

What are the consequences of not having annual AGMs?

Answer: If your OC requires funds to be collected or to make decisions that impact the use of the common property, we recommend that you hold annual general meetings to pass resolutions in this regard.

An Owners Corporation (OC) is capable of making legal decisions by passing resolutions. Resolutions are passed at OC meetings. To raise funds, the OC must pass resolutions giving it a legal right to pass a budget and raise the funds for the budget by collecting owner contributions.

If your OC requires funds to be collected or to make decisions that impact the use of the common property, we recommend that you hold annual general meetings to pass resolutions in this regard.

Rochelle Castro
RC & Co Lawyers
E: law@rccolawyers.com
P: 1300 072 626

This post appears in Strata News #538.

Have a question about Annual General Meeting in Victorian Owners Corporations or something to add to the article? Leave a comment below.

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