This article is about why body corporate managers are not contractually obligated to provide legal compliance advice to committees and why responsibility for compliance rests with the committee itself.
Question: Why don’t body corporate managers have a contractual duty to advise committees on legal compliance?
We noticed that caretaker agreements sometimes include a duty to advise the body corporate on compliance with relevant laws regarding maintenance of common property. However, we cannot find any similar obligation in the body corporate management contract to advise on legal compliance when handling body corporate matters.
If the committee gives instructions that conflict with the BCCM Act or other laws, and the body corporate manager does not warn the committee because it is not legally required, could this expose the body corporate to unnecessary legal risks? Why isn’t “advice or warning to the body corporate on legal compliance” a standard part of the body corporate manager’s service contract?
Answer: A good body corporate manager may be able to flag the issue with the committee and suggest a different path – but they would not be taking on responsibility for the committee’s improper decision.
No, giving such advice is not the role or responsibility of the body corporate manager. Body corporate managers are often the first people to have the finger pointed at them, usually improperly, when something goes wrong. Their obligations extend to completing the duties set out in the administration agreement (which usually are at the instruction of the committee) and complying with the code of conduct in doing so.
The example used in the question is a good example of this issue. Relevantly, the example provides that it is the committee giving instructions that conflict with the BCCMA. Therefore, it should be the committee to bear those risks and not the body corporate manager. However, in those circumstances, a good body corporate manager may be able to flag the issue with the committee and suggest a different path – but they would not be taking on responsibility for the committee’s improper decision.
Todd Garsden
Mahoneys
E: [email protected]
P: 07 3007 3753
This post appears in the September 2025 edition of The QLD Strata Magazine
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