Sea Shore Court 18 [2008] QBCCMCmr 51 (14 February 2008)

TAKE NOTICE that pursuant to an application made under the abovementioned Act by

I hereby order that -

(1) GB Lawyers (PO Box 518, Sandgate Qld 4017) is appointed as administrator to call, hold and chair an annual general meeting (‘the meeting’) of the Body Corporate for Sea Shore Court 18 within three (3) months of the date of this order.
(2) The administrator shall hold the appointment for the period beginning from the date of this order until of the close of the meeting ordered.

I further order that for the purposes of the Body Corporate and Community Management Act 1997 (‘the Act’), the meeting shall be deemed to be the First Annual General Meeting of the Body Corporate.

I further order that for the purpose of calling, holding and chairing the meeting, the administrator shall have all the powers of the chairperson, secretary and treasurer of the body corporate, and of the committee, with the exception of the following powers:

- to further delegate any of those powers to another person; or
- to incur any expenditure apart from that necessary for the calling and holding of the meeting, except in regard to expenses that must necessarily be met and are capable of being authorised and incurred by a committee under the legislation.

I further order that the meeting shall be called and held in accordance with the Act and the Body Corporate and Community Management (Standard Module) Regulation 1997 (the ‘Standard Module’), and that the agenda for the meeting must include the items stated in section 62(3) of the Standard Module and may also include any other motion properly submitted.

I further order that for the purposes of determining the future financial year of the Body Corporate for Sea Shore Court 18, the end of the month preceding the month in which the meeting is held shall be deemed to be the end of the financial year.

Sea Shore Court 18 community titles scheme (Sea Shore Court 18) consists of three lots and common property. The scheme’s community management statement indicates the Body Corporate and Community Management (Standard Module) Regulation 1997 (Standard Module) applies to the scheme.

Pursuant to the Body Corporate and Community Management Act 1997 (Act), this application was made by Margaret Martin, the Owner of Lots 1-3 (applicant) on 6 February 2008 seeking a declaratory order in the following terms:

An Order that the applicant or the applicants agent convene the first annual general meeting of the body corporate of Sea Shore Court 18.

I am satisfied that this is a matter which falls within the legislative dispute resolution provisions.[1]

Section 276(1) of the Act provides that an adjudicator may make an order that is just and equitable in the circumstances (including a declaratory order) to resolve a dispute, in the context of a community titles scheme, about a claimed or anticipated contravention of the Act or the community management statement, or the exercise of rights or powers, or the performance of duties, under the Act or the community management statement.

An order may require a person to act, or prohibit a person from acting, in a way stated in the order (section 276(2)). An adjudicator's order may contain ancillary and consequential provisions the adjudicator considers necessary or appropriate (section 284(1)).

Specifically, and without limiting the power to make an order under section 276(1), an adjudicator may order the body corporate to call a general meeting of its members to deal with stated business or to change the date of an annual general meeting[2] or alternatively, the adjudicator may order the appointment of an administrator, and authorise the administrator to perform obligations of the body corporate, its committee, or a member of its committee under this Act or the community management statement or the obligations of the body corporate under another Act.[3]

An administrator appointed by an adjudicator has the powers given to the administrator under the order.[4] Section 301(4) of the Act provides that the order may:

The Body Corporate for Sea Shore Court 18 was established when the scheme was first registered in December 1989. The applicant purchased all three lots in January 2006. The application indicates that there are no records of any meeting of the Body Corporate. As such the Body Corporate is not currently operating on a proper legal footing.

Section 62 of the Standard Module provides that the original owner must call and hold the first annual general meeting of a body corporate within two months after the first of the following:

(a) more than 50% of the lots included in the scheme are no longer in the ownership of the original owner;

(b) 6 months elapse after the establishment of the scheme.
The agenda for the meeting must include the items set out in section 62(3) of the Standard Module.

If the original owner does not call and hold the first annual general meeting as required by the section, the order of an adjudicator under the dispute resolution provisions may include an order appointing a person to call the first annual general meeting within a stated time (section 62(4)). The purpose of such an order is to re-establish the body corporate and to facilitate the Body Corporate conducting its affairs in accordance with the legislation.

The applicant has requested that her agents, GB Lawyers, be appointed to convene an annual general meeting, to put the Body Corporate on a proper legal basis which will facilitate the sale of the properties. In the circumstances, I am satisfied that this order should be made.

In the absence of any records that a previous annual general meeting has been made, the meeting I have ordered shall be deemed the first annual general meeting for the scheme. To avoid any doubt, I have also included an order to set the financial year end date for the scheme.

[1] See sections 227, 228, 276 and Schedule 5 of the Act
[2] See Item 6 of Schedule 5 to the Act
[3] See Item 23 of Schedule 5 to the Act
[4] See section 301(2) of the Act

Number of Scheme:	5639
Name of Scheme:	Sea Shore Court 18
Address of Scheme:	18 Huntington Street CLONTARF QLD 4019

Queensland Body Corporate and Community Management Commissioner - Adjudicators Orders

Sea Shore Court 18 [2008] QBCCMCmr 51 (14 February 2008)