QLD: Q&A How Do Proxy Votes Work?

We have been asked a few questions about proxy votes in Queensland strata schemes. This has been answered by Hynes Legal.

Table of Contents:

• QUESTION: At an AGM, can proxies be used to vote for the position of chairperson?
• QUESTION: Can a person nominated as a proxy be voted onto the body corporate committee over a lot owner.
• QUESTION: Can a proxy voter hold any position in our 4 Unit complex? How long does a proxy vote last?
• QUESTION: At a recent EGM, 11 lot owners voted who were not even present at the meeting. Is there a rule or a law to prevent this or punish owners who behave in this way?
• QUESTION: In the accommodation module where a maximum of 10% of lots can use a proxy vote, is it per person holding the proxies, or total proxy votes?
• QUESTION: Can a non voting On-Site manager exercise Proxy votes for consenting owners?
• QUESTION: I attended an AGM as a proxy for an owner. The lot owner did not attend but lodged a voting paper and proxy form. I was advised the system is either a voting paper OR a proxy. Is this correct?
• QUESTION: How many proxy votes can someone hold at the Annual General Meeting for a small block of fewer than 20 units?

Question: At an AGM, can proxies be used to vote for the position of chairperson?

For our upcoming AGM, nominations for committee members equal the required number, so no voting is required. However, there were no nominations for the position of chairperson, so nominations for this position are to be called from the floor at the AGM and then voted on.

Can proxies be used by AGM attendees for voting on the nominations received from the floor for the position of chairperson?

Answer: A proxy cannot vote on a ballot to elect a member of the committee.

Under the accommodation and standard modules, a proxy cannot vote on a ballot to elect a member of the committee.

So the votes or the chair can only come from eligible voters who vote from the floor on the day.

See the BCCM website for more information on proxies: General meeting voting

William Marquand
Tower Body Corporate
E: willmarquand@towerbodycorporate.com.au
P: 07 5609 4924

This post appears in Strata News #652.

Question: Can a person nominated as a proxy be voted onto the body corporate committee over a lot owner.

Answer: It is not a requirement to be an owner to be a committee member and owners do not have any precedence over other eligible nominees.

It is not a requirement to be an owner to be a committee member and owners do not have any precedence over other eligible nominees.

A lot owner who is an individual can nominate any of the following individuals:

• themselves
• another lot owner
• a person they have appointed as their power of attorney
• a member of their family.

And, a lot owner that is a company may nominate any of the following individuals:

• another lot owner
• a director of the corporation
• the secretary of the corporation
• another nominee of the corporation.

So, there are a wide variety of people who can be appointed. Provided those conditions are met there is nothing to stop a non-owner nomination ahead of a lot owner. The question here mentions whether a proxy holder can be appointed but that may be a red herring as that status needs to be considered in the contact of the eligibility requirements.

For further information please see the government website page on Committee eligibility and nominations: Queensland Government: Nominations and eligibility for body corporate committees

William Marquand
Tower Body Corporate
E: willmarquand@towerbodycorporate.com.au
P: 07 5609 4924

This post appears in Strata News #554.

Question: Can a proxy voter hold any position in our 4 Unit complex? How long does a proxy vote last?

Answer: Proxy holders cannot hold a committee position

No, proxy holders cannot hold a committee position.

A lot owner who is an individual can only nominate the following people to be part of the Committee:

• Themselves.
• Another lot owner.
• A person they have appointed as their power of attorney.
• A member of their family.

A family member means:

• The lot owner’s spouse, including ‘de facto’ spouse
• Children of the lot owner or their spouse who are over 18 (including a step-child or adopted child)
• The lot owner’s parents or step-parents
• The lot owner’s brother or sister

Proxies lapse at the end of the body corporate’s financial year or at the end of a shorter period stated on the proxy form.

On the BCCM proxy nomination form, Form 6, there are three options provided for indicating the length of a proxy stating that it is valid for:

• The general meeting to be held on dd/mm/yyyy.
• All general meetings held before dd/mm/yyyy.
• All general meetings held during the rest of the body corporate’s financial year unless I/we serve you with a prior written withdrawal of the appointment.

You can find a copy of the General Meeting Proxy Form – Form 6 here.

For more details about nominations check the BCCM website: Nominations and eligibility for body corporate committees

William Marquand
Tower Body Corporate
E: willmarquand@towerbodycorporate.com.au
P: 07 5609 4924

This post appears in Strata News #513.

Question: At a recent EGM, 11 lot owners voted who were not even present at the meeting. Is there a rule or a law to prevent this or punish owners who behave in this way?

My Body Corporate held an EGM in December 2020 which was attended in person by 8 people representing 11 lots out of a total of 64. At the next EGM the minutes from that previous EGM were received, with a total of 22 votes either for or against and 8 abstentions. In other words at least 11 lot owners voted when they were not at the meeting.

Is there a rule or a law to prevent this or punish owners who behave in this way?

Answer: Proxy voting is a standard feature of corporate governance, regardless of whether it’s a body corporate or other corporate entity.

Proxy voting is a standard feature of corporate governance, regardless of whether it’s a body corporate or other corporate entity. So too is the use of voting papers or electronic voting. In other words, being physically present at a meeting is not a prerequisite for voting at it.

Body corporate legislation puts restrictions on the use of proxies in certain situations. So if you are suggesting those restrictions were not adhered to, or that the votes were not properly counted, then perhaps you have a valid concern and there are options for you to pursue that, provided that you have evidence to support. Otherwise, bodies corporate can resolve by special resolution to prohibit the use of proxies altogether. As an owner you are free to put such a motion to a general meeting if you wish. If your motion gets defeated, then perhaps that is an indication to you that others do not share your views on proxy usage or that it requires ‘punishment’, to use your words.

Chris Irons
Hynes Legal
E: chris.irons@hyneslegal.com.au
P: 07 3193 0500

This post appears in Strata News #476.

Question: In the accommodation module where a maximum of 10% of lots can use a proxy vote, is it per person holding the proxies, or total proxy votes?

In the accommodation module where a maximum of 10% of lots can use a proxy vote, is it per person holding the proxies, or total proxy votes? For example, if there are 100 lots:

• 10% = 10 proxies, so only 10 total proxies, or
• can 2 people hold 10 proxies each ?

Answer: The restriction here is on a ‘person’ (singular) not holding over a certain number.

Section 105(4) of the Accommodation Module provides as follows:

4. A person must not hold —
   
   1. if there are 20 or more lots included in the community titles scheme—proxies greater in number than 10% of the lots; or
   2. if there are fewer than 20 lots included in the scheme—more than 1 proxy.

The restriction here is on a ‘person’ (singular) not holding over a certain number.

Chris Irons
Hynes Legal
E: chris.irons@hyneslegal.com.au
P: 07 3193 0500

This post appears in Strata News #439.

Question: Can a non voting On-Site manager exercise Proxy votes for consenting owners?

Answer: At general meetings owners can appoint who they want to represent them but proxies cannot be used to vote on certain motions and a person cannot hold any more than a certain number of them, depending on the Module they are regulated by.

Frank Higginson
Hynes Legal
frank.higginson@hyneslegal.com.au
P: 07 3193 0500

This post appears in Strata News #435.

Question: I attended an AGM as a proxy for an owner. The lot owner did not attend but lodged a voting paper and proxy form. I was advised the system is either a voting paper OR a proxy. Is this correct?

I recently attended an AGM as a proxy for an owner. The lot owner did not attend but lodged a voting paper and the proxy form.

I was advised by the Chairman that in Queensland, the system is either a voting paper OR a proxy. I was allowed to stay, but only as an observer.

I understand there are some restrictions on what a proxy holder can do but have always assumed that generally, the proxy holder has all of the rights of the owner, including voting on procedural motions and asking questions about the agenda motions.

Answer: A proxy cannot overrule the rights of the owner to vote.

Section 109 of the Accommodation Module sets out how a proxy can be used at a general meeting.

One of those provisions is that a proxy cannot be used if the owner has cast a written or electronic vote on the motion. A proxy cannot overrule the rights of the owner to vote.

Frank Higginson
Hynes Legal
frank.higginson@hyneslegal.com.au
P: 07 3193 0500

This post appears in Strata News #323.

Question: How many proxy votes can someone hold at the Annual General Meeting for a small block of fewer than 20 units?

I own a strata unit in a small block of fewer than 20 units. I have been informed that I am not allowed to be appointed as a proxy for another owner who resides interstate and is unable to attend the annual meeting. The person who gave me this information says that no one person is allowed more than one vote. A lady in the group owns two units but she has been told she only gets one vote.

How many proxy votes can one person hold? What are the rules around voting with proxies?

The group is located in Hervey Bay in Queensland. It is being managed by a strata management company at the Sunshine Coast and the annual meeting is going to be held in Hervey Bay. Only two of the owners live in Hervey Bay. One is the lady with two units and the other owner is the man who has bought the management rights for the group.

I would appreciate your response and assistance.

Answer: If proxies have not been prohibited, as there are less than 20 lots, only one can be held.

Proxies are pretty simple really in a relative sense.

For schemes with fewer than 20 lots (like this one), an owner can only hold one proxy UNLESS the body corporate has prohibited their use at the general meeting. So you can hold one proxy and vote for yourself in your own right too. You cannot use proxies to vote on certain things – which includes the election of the committee.

If there are more than 20 lots, proxies are capped at no more than 5% of the lots if you are in the Standard Module and 10% of the lots if you are in the Accommodation Module and those same voting restrictions apply for committee elections etc.

Given there is three weeks notice for a general meeting, and everyone can vote by voting paper, it is usually much easier to make sure that voting paper is sent back and then the person has voted in their own right. The proxy (if you want one) can then be used on the day for any procedural motions from the floor (like overturning a chairpersons decision on a motion out of order or the like). We wrote about that here: QLD: What happens if a general meeting motion is out of order?.

So in this instance, if proxies have not been prohibited, as there are less than 20 lots, only one can be held.

Frank Higginson
Hynes Legal
frank.higginson@hyneslegal.com.au
P: 07 3193 0500

This post appears in Strata News #158.

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Read next:

• QLD Proxy Votes: Should you give your voting right to someone else?
• QLD: Proxy Forms

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