Question: Can an owner ask the strata manager to forward all correspondence and financial information to their proxy?
I am a proxy for an owner in a NSW strata plan. The scheme has a strata manager.
Can an owner ask the strata manager to forward all correspondence and financial information to their proxy? If this request has been made and the information is not supplied, what recourse do we have?
Answer: A proxy is an entitlement to vote on behalf of a lot owner, nothing more.
A proxy is an entitlement to vote on behalf of a lot owner, nothing more. It does not necessarily entitle you to communicate with the strata manager or owners corporation, request documents, request motions be included in meetings, nominate yourself to the committee and various other functions that a lot owner can perform.
You would need a power of attorney to act on behalf of the lot owner, as opposed to being entitled to vote on their behalf with a proxy.
An owner can request documents from the owners corporation, however, an owners corporation is under no obligation to provide the books and records from a simple request. An owner, or someone authorised by an owner, can request an inspection of the books and records of the owners corporation. There is a fee payable, and, in many cases, the inspection can be done electronically. The owners corporation, usually through their strata manager, must make the books and records available if the request is in writing and the fee has been paid. There may be further fees for photocopying if you want to take copies of documents.
You would have to check the strata management statement in regards to how the books and record are held by the building management committee for the BMC. There may be a specific process set out in the strata management statement as to how the documents can be accessed.
If the books and records of the BMC are in the control of the owners corporation they should be made available to you for inspection when applying to inspect the records under Section 182 of the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015.
This post appears in the February 2025 edition of The NSW Strata Magazine.
Matthew Jenkins Bannermans Lawyers E: enquiries@bannermans.com.au P: 02 9929 0226