Body Corporate Quorums for AGMs
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Before any decisions can be made at a body corporate meeting, one fundamental requirement must be met: a quorum. Without it, the meeting cannot proceed.
In simple terms, a quorum is the minimum level of attendance needed to ensure that decisions are made with enough owner representation behind them. It exists to protect fairness, accountability, and the integrity of the decision-making process within a scheme.
What is a Quorum?
A quorum is the minimum number of eligible voters required to be present at a general meeting before business can proceed.
If a quorum is not achieved within 30 minutes after the start time, the meeting must either be adjourned for 7 days, allowing a further period for owners to submit votes.
How a Quorum is Formed
For most body corporate schemes, a quorum is determined by two key requirements:
1. Minimum attendance
At least two voters must be present and able to communicate during the meeting, either in person or electronically where electronic attendance has been approved; simply submitting an electronic vote does not satisfy this requirement.
If the scheme has two or fewer total voters, then one attendee is sufficient.
This requirement ensures that decisions are not made in isolation or without meaningful participation.
2. Minimum voting participation (25% rule)
There must also be votes representing at least 25% of all eligible voters in the scheme. Because you cannot have a fraction of a voter, the number is rounded up to the nearest whole number.
For example:
- 100 voters → 25 required
- 86 voters → 22 required (21.5 rounded up)
- 72 voters → 18 required
- 62 voters → 16 required (15.5 rounded up)
Both conditions must be satisfied for a quorum to exist.
Who Counts as a Voter?
Determining the number of voters is not always as straightforward as counting lots. A ‘voter’ is an person entitled to vote at the meeting, and this can differ from the number of owners.
Here are the considerations:
- Unfinancial owners still count as voters when calculating the total number of voters, even though their voting rights will be restricted.
- Where a lot is owned by a company, the lot is only counted as a voter if the company has authorised a person to act on its behalf, such as a company nominee, proxy or attorney. If no representative is appointed, the lot may not be counted when calculating a quorum.
- Multiple lots owned by one entity still generally count as a single voter.
To understand how this works in practice, consider three schemes, each with 100 lots:
- If each lot is owned by a different individual → 100 voters
- If one owner holds 15 lots → 86 voters
- If 10 company-owned lots have no appointed representative → 90 voters
These changes directly affect how many people must be present and how many votes are required for a quorum.
What Happens If There is No Quorum?
If a quorum is not reached within 30 minutes of the scheduled start time, the meeting cannot proceed.
The meeting is adjourned to the same place, time, and day in the following week.
At the adjourned meeting, if a quorum is still not present after 30 minutes, the attendees present are deemed to form a quorum. This means even a very small number of attendees, or potentially a single attendee, could validly pass resolutions.
Why the 25% Rule Matters
The 25% threshold ensures that decisions are not made by an unrepresentative minority. It balances practicality – so meetings can proceed without full attendance, with fairness – so outcomes reflect a meaningful portion of the scheme.
However, it also highlights a common issue in strata schemes: low participation can lead to decisions being made by a very small group of owners.
In summary
Quorums are not just a procedural formality. they are the foundation of valid decision-making in body corporate meetings. They ensure that outcomes reflect genuine participation from the scheme and help maintain legal and operational integrity.
Without a quorum, there is no meeting. And without a meeting, there are no valid decisions.
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Who Can Sit on a Body Corporate Committee?
A body corporate committee is usually made up of lot owners who have been elected by owners at the Annual General Meeting (AGM). The committee acts on behalf of the body corporate and makes decisions about the day-to-day management of the scheme.
Body Corporate Quorums for AGMs
A quorum is the minimum level of attendance needed to ensure that decisions are made with enough owner representation behind them. It exists to protect fairness, accountability, and the integrity of the decision-making process within a scheme.