Owners are entitled to examine records of the condominium. Subsection 55(3) of the Condominium Act, 1998, gives owners the right to examine or obtain copies of the condominium’s records, subject to certain limits described in subsection 55(4). Subsection 55(4) excludes certain records, including records related to other owners or units and records “relating to actual […]

Over the past few months, many condominium corporations have put their owners’ meetings on hold waiting to see whether things would get back to “normal” soon.    Read the article………………………..

In a significant move for Alberta condominiums, on June 1, 2020 the Lieutenant-Governor of Alberta, the Honourable Lois Mitchell, approved an Order in Council to amend the Condominium Property Regulation, AR 168/2000. Among other slight changes to document retention periods, the amendments notably give condominium corporations the ability to temporarily remove funds from their capital […]

The Court of Appeal for British Columbia has quashed a decision from the Civil Resolution Tribunal which concerned the section of the Civil Resolution Tribunal Act that limits the role of lawyers in proceedings, sending the matter back to the tribunal.  Read the article………………………….

The legal provisions aimed at ending the real estate developer’s control over the syndicate of co-owners are designed to ensure the smooth handover of decision-making power from a building’s developer to its new owners. The developer’s management of the building, which is geared toward construction and sale, is to be replaced by the regular operation […]

“Hey All You Cool Cats and Kittens”, in the recent decision of Reva Landau v Metropolitan Toronto Condominium Corporation No. 757, the Condominium Authority Tribunal of Ontario (“CAT”) confirmed that solicitor-client privilege applies to legal opinions rendered by a Corporation’s lawyer.  Solicitor-client privilege is a common law principle that protects communications between a lawyer and […]

I sometimes receive emails or calls from owners and directors who disagree with my opinion on an issue because they have read the Condominium Act, 1998, and misinterpreted part of it. Once I explain the relevant part of the Act or assist them in finding the relevant information they missed, we are usually able to […]

Many condo corporations have provisions in their declarations that provide that the corporation can recover an increase in the corporation’s insurance premiums from an owner who, by act or omission, caused that increase (“Premium Increase Provisions”). Practically speaking, the use of Premium Increase Provisions will usually be a result of an increase in a corporation’s […]

As condo development increases across Canada, especially in urban centers, we can expect an influx of litigation over the interpretation and application of condo legislation and their bylaws. One common trend in Alberta is the reliance on section 67 of Alberta’s Condominium Property Act, (“CPA”) in the litigation process to enforce reasonable behavior.    Read the […]

Last week we were recommending postponing AGMs in accordance with the April 24th Order in Council. The Order in Council permitted those condo corporations with AGMs required to be held within the emergency period, the ability to postpone their AGMs until 90 days from the date that the emergency period ends.    Read the article………………..

A strata corporation that tried to charge a unit owner $1,260 in water damage restoration costs has lost its case before the British Columbia Civil Resolution Tribunal.  In July 2019, an outdoor water tap failed, causing water to enter a wall between Bryan Hooper’s strata lot and a neighbour’s lot.   Read the article………………………..

I have heard of situations where a condominium wants to avoid a requirement of the Act for one reason or another. Often the desire is to avoid the costs associated with the requirement. Other times the desire appears to be to reduce the number of administrative tasks. Whatever the reason, Section 176 of the Condominium […]

Here’s a common event in Alberta condominiums: A water pipe bursts in one unit, causing water to leak into several other units. Each unit suffers significant damage and the Condominium Board becomes involved with the repairs. The Board makes an insurance claim and pays the insurance deductible, which may be tens of thousands of dollars.  […]

A recent decision from the Ontario Superior Court, Beswick et al. v. York Region Standard Condominium Corporation No. 1175, has seemingly increased the threshold of what is needed to demonstrate an entitlement to the oppression remedy under s. 135 of the Condominium Act (the “Act”).    Read the article…………………………..

Ontario’s Order in Council (the “Order”) allows condominium corporations to host virtual meetings during the emergency period without a by-law. However, the Order does not specify any details about how a virtual meeting is actually supposed to take place. How are votes held? How is registration handled? How are questions and answers posed?   Read the […]

Many Ontario condominiums have seen huge increases in insurance premiums and deductibles in the last round of policy renewals. We are seeing deductibles for water damage and sewer back-up as high as $250,000. We are aware of one property where the deductibles have reached $500,000.   Read the article……………………………

Condominium Corporations in Alberta are subject to the Personal Information Protection Act (PIPA) which is consent based legislation; in most cases Condominium Corporations must obtain consent for the collection, use, and disclosure of personal information. In addition, PIPA also provides individuals with the right to access their own personal information. Copies of the legislation and […]

To lawfully facilitate and conduct a general meeting by an electronic method, which requires every eligible voter to be able to communicate with each other, your strata council and manager will still be required to meet the technical requirements of notice, registration, proxy certification and a voting method that meets the requirements of the Strata […]

In a recent decision the Condominium Authority Tribunal (CAT) was asked to rule on an owner’s request for records. The owner requested several records, including audited financial statements, budgets, board meeting minutes, AGM minutes, the most recent PIC, by-laws, employment agreements with any directors, and management contract. The condominium suggested that many of the issues […]

An Ontario ruling revealed vastly different opinions across the condo law bar when it comes to charging condo unit owners with a lien for the legal cost of enforcing a rule — before a dispute has even been decided.   Read the article……………………….

There is no need to cause unnecessary panic over this but, there is no denying it, the Coronavirus has reached our shores and is spreading.  Our first comment will be one of cautious optimism. Indeed, the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) continues to assess the public health risk as low for Canada. Still, unsurprisingly […]

A recent Case before the Condominium Authority Tribunal of Ontario (the “Tribunal”) contains some important findings and reminders for corporations responding to records requests:  Read the article………………………..

Did you know that several sections of the Civil Code of Québec1 concerning the insurance of divided co-ownerships have recently been amended or will soon be amended? On June 13, the Québec National Assembly adopted the Act mainly to improve the regulation of the financial sector, the protection of deposits of money and the operation […]

A formal notice is a debtor’s last chance to make reparation for his or her fault. A creditor’s failure to deliver formal notice to a debtor may have serious consequences, including the dismissal of a claim.  In addition to the general principles governing the admissibility of a legal action, the co-ownership syndicate is required to […]

Many are sounding the alarm, claiming that the condo industry is facing an insurance crisis. We will explore this over the next few posts. In the meantime, to help us better understand the state of insurance in the condo world, we encourage our readers to take our survey on condo insurance.     Read the article……………………………

A recent case before the Superior Court of Justice has provided the Court with an opportunity to canvass the law with respect to compliance applications.  In MTCC No. 933 v. Lyn (2020) ONSC 196, a resident began to experience excessive noise from a neighboring unit throughout the night and into the early hours of the […]

One broker association is calling for consultation among all key stakeholders to discuss owner liability in condo corporations, with a focus on proposed achievable legislative action.  As condominium (strata) insurance premiums and deductibles continue to rise across the country, the Insurance Brokers Association of B.C. (IBABC) is recommending two key reforms to the Strata Property […]

A dreaded scenario for strata corporations is a resident that continues to breach the bylaws in spite of warnings and fines. A strata corporation may be hesitant to take the next step of pursuing a legal action out of fear that the legal costs may be high and not recoverable from the owner.   Read the […]

Owner apathy is a real problem; in fact, it is one of the biggest challenges facing the con-dominium industry today. Many condos struggle to get 25% of their owners to participatein an AGM, and the legislation in Ontario requires a majority of owners (i.e. 50% +1) tovote in favour of a borrowing by-law to authorize […]

In a recent case (Lucas et al v. 1858793 Ontario Inc. o/a Howard Park et al., 2019 ONSC 7402), a condo developer was unsuccessful in its attempt to terminate a pre-construction agreement of purchase and sale and keep the deposits.    Read the article……………………………

In a recent decision, the Ontario Court of Appeal has confirmed that condo corporations must advise owners of their intention to commence a lawsuit but, reversing a 37 year old legal precedent, it has injected some flexibility in how courts will deal with a corporation’s failure to comply with this obligation.    Read the article………………………..

After more than 35 years, a panel of judges in the Court of Appeal for Ontario has overturned a long-standing interpretation of condominium law, citing the law’s unnecessarily harsh effects.  The Jan. 31 decision, York Region Standard Condominium Corporation No. 1206 v. 520 Steeles Developments Inc., 2020 ONCA 63, means that a condo corporation that […]

In a previous post, we discussed the high costs of ignoring a CAT order in a recent court decision.  Here, we focus on offers to settle in litigation. Rule 49.10 of the Rules of Civil Procedure deals with cost consequences for a party’s failure to accept an offer to settle.    Read the article………………………….

Condo corporations are unique statutory creations with certain rights, abilities, and obligations, including commencing lawsuits. Subsection 23(2) of the Condominium Act requires written notice be given to the all owners in the corporation’s record of owners before commencing an action.   Read the article……………………………

Maintenance fees, or condo fees as they’re often referred, can be an annoyance for first time condo buyers and long-time condo owners: paying out additional fees each month on top of a mortgage can understandably create some frustration.   Read the article………………………..

As we have posted time and time again, it is very important for condo corporations to treat owners reasonably and fairly. This is true even when the condo is acting to fulfill its requirements under the Condominium Act. The Court of Appeal recently released a decision that reflects on this important aspect of corporate governance, […]

The first board of directors of newly registered condo corporation, will often be faced with many tasks that follow once the turnover of the condominium corporation from the declarant to the unit owners takes place. One item that sometimes is missed, is the securing of as-built drawings. Section 43(5) of the Condominium Act, 1998 (the […]