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Body corporate committees make decisions through committee meetings in two ways:
These two decision-making forums have different procedures and can be used strategically to reach consensus by discussion or to get a quick majority discussion.
The legislative framework is designed to make committee decisions transparent to owners in the body corporate, to allow owners to understand what decisions the committee has made reasonably quickly after the decision. This transparency is achieved in the following ways:
This article considers some committee meeting best-practice tips from our expert BCsystems strata management team – to help your committee use its time most effectively. We’ll also discuss the strategic use of VOC to make decisions efficiently.
A committee meeting is a meeting (either in-person or by telephone or video) that allows the committee to make binding decisions. It must satisfy the following elements:
There is no minimum or maximum number of committee meetings that must be held by the committee. No two committee meetings look the same – anything from a formal meeting at BCsystems office to a stand-up meeting in the building’s foyer can qualify as a committee meeting, as long as the basic elements of a meeting are satisfied (notice, agenda, quorum).
| What notice must be given? | Notice of the meeting (including date, time, location) Agenda of the meeting |
| Notice period | 7 days + postage (2 weeks total) |
| Best practice/tips | Whilst the agenda must be set in advance and given to owners, the committee can add/remove and rearrange items on the agenda right up to the start of the meeting Owners only need to receive the headings of agenda items, not the full background material and attachments Owners must notify the committee if they want to observe the meeting – read more about observers later. |
The agenda for a committee meeting must contain the items of business that the committee plans to discuss.
In addition to the agenda, the committee members should receive:
The committee should have at least 3 or 4 days before the meeting to review the documents in detail and prepare any discussion or questions before the meeting.
If your committee has assigned a task to a particular committee member (e.g. Steve to investigate cost for CCTV upgrade), the member should make sure to put their findings in an email or report and distribute it before the meeting.
It is not advisable to give verbal reports at the committee meeting, as complicated topics generally require some time to think through the options, and it is likely those items would be deferred if committee members have not had enough time to consider in detail.
Owners in the body corporate community have a right to attend and observe committee meetings.
Meetings with observers can be tricky to navigate. Whilst this is a key part of the committee’s transparency obligation, in practice when owners attend committee meetings, the meeting can become difficult to manage and can go on for a long time.
Owners in the body corporate are naturally very invested in the meeting discussion, as the committee will be discussing important matters relating to the building and the community. Whilst owner feedback is nearly always well-intentioned, it is still an interruption to the meeting process. That can make the difference between a committee meeting finishing at 6pm or 9:30pm, and often the outcomes of the meeting are not changed after the discussion.
It is important to remember that the committee members are elected to represent all owners, and the purpose of having a committee is to speed up the decision-making process. If the committee consults owners who are not on the committee prior to each decision – that can make the elected committee less effective.
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Caretaker reports a broken door handle in the pool area, it will cost around $350 to replace. Which door handle was broken? – the one on the shower door. Is it just damaged or does it need to be replaced? – it probably could be repaired, but the lock is low-quality and it can be replaced with a better quality one for that price. Who broke it? Unsure at this stage Was it captured on CCTV? No, that area is not under surveillance. Can the CCTV be adjusted? Maybe, would need to be checked and may require the security contractor to adjust. Is it lawful to capture the pool area on CCTV or is that a privacy issue? Not a privacy issue, the CCTV records are private and the pool is a public area. How did they even get in there, isn’t the pool closed after 9pm? Yes, it should be closed, possibly they got in using a fob, could check the fob records. Has it been reported to the police? No, given the low value and not needing to make an insurance claim. |
25-minute discussion. This doesn’t go in the minutes at all. | |
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Resolved that the caretaker: a) Get the door lock replaced at a cost of approximately $350 b) Report the incident to Qld police c) Adjust the CCTV to cover the area, if possible 6 Yes votes Action: Caretaker |
2-minute summary. This is what the minutes record. |
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While it’s easy for frustrations to build up, complaints don’t have to be purely negative. When addressed respectfully, they can lead to practical improvements and stronger relationships.
While it might sound like a free-for-all discussion, this part of the meeting has clear boundaries. It provides a forum for owners to raise questions, share information, and highlight issues, but it cannot be used to make decisions that bind the body corporate unless the matter is properly included as a formal motion on the agenda.