QLD: What happens if a chairperson refuses to chair a committee meeting?

Question: Can committee members vote to have the body corporate manager chair a meeting if the chairperson will not chair?

If the chairperson does not want to chair a committee meeting, can a majority of committee members present vote to have the body corporate manager chair the meeting, or does the decision need unanimous agreement?

Answer: If the chairperson does not want to perform the role, they should step down so another committee member who is willing can take on the position.

Section 59 of the Standard Module (equivalent provisions of other Modules) provides for who may chair meetings. We’ve reproduced the section in full below:

59 Chairing committee meetings

1. The chairperson must chair all meetings of the committee at which the chairperson is present.
2. If the chairperson is absent from a meeting, the member chosen, with the member’s agreement, by the voting members present at the meeting must chair the meeting.
3. In this section—

present means present personally or by electronic means.

You’ll note here the reference is to ‘member’, and not ‘person’. A body corporate manager is a non-voting member of a committee, so what you’re suggesting may be appropriate. In addition, there are legislative provisions relating to a body corporate manager performing functions of the committee and its members (for example, section 74 of the Standard Module). So you may want to check the terms of your agreement with your body corporate manager regarding this (as well as any fees that may apply).

To be honest, though, this isn’t really the issue: take note from the above that the wording says the chairperson ‘must’ – not ‘may’ – chair all meetings at which they are present. That’s distinct from the chairperson not actually being at the meeting: your query suggests the chairperson is present but doesn’t want to execute their role. Perhaps the committee could explore with the chairperson the reasons for their reticence. If they’re not confident in the role or unsure about governance processes, excellent, free online training is available through the Commissioner’s Office. If they can’t be bothered, that’s very different.

At the risk of being blunt, the word ‘chairperson’ has a literal meaning of ‘one who chairs’ – so if your chairperson doesn’t want to do the job, they should step down from the role and allow someone else who does want to chair to do the job.

This is general information only and not legal advice.

This post appears in the April 2026 edition of The QLD Strata Magazine.

Chris Irons
Strata Solve
E: chris@stratasolve.com.au
P: 0419 805 898