Question: Our council was elected with seven members, but only three remain after four resignations, so does the quorum stay at four or drop to two?
At our AGM in November, seven people were elected to the council of owners. Since March, only three councillors remain, as four have resigned. Does the quorum still have to be four, as when everyone was originally elected, or does it change to two now that there are only three councillors left? We have 50 units in the complex.
We’ve been assuming the quorum is two. If this isn’t correct, does this mean any meetings the council has held with only two or three members are invalid? The strata managers say that, with only three remaining members, they need only two councillors to meet the quorum.
Answer: Resignations create vacancies. They don’t reduce the council’s size or its quorum, so the quorum stays at four.
The Strata Titles Act 1985 Governance By-Laws Schedule 1, clause 4, sets out the constitution of the council. By-law 4(11) deals with the quorum requirements. Presumably at the AGM, the strata company determined that the council would consist of seven members. Therefore, under by-law 4(11), the quorum for a seven-member council is four members.
The subsequent resignation of four council members creates vacancies on the council. It does not automatically reduce the council from seven members to three, or reduce the quorum from four to two.
Therefore, based on the standard governance by-laws:
- Council size determined at AGM: 7
- Current members remaining: 3
- Required quorum: 4
Therefore, the three remaining members do not currently have a quorum to conduct ordinary council business.
Importantly, governance by-law 4(12) specifically deals with this situation. Where vacancies reduce the council below the required quorum, the remaining members may act for the purpose of increasing the number of council members or convening a general meeting, but not for other council business.
The vacancies can be filled under governance by-law 4(10). Once at least one eligible person is appointed, the council will again have four members and the required quorum.
This post appears in the October 2026 edition of The WA Strata Magazine.
Andrew Chambers Chambers Franklyn Strata Management E: andrew@chambersfranklyn.com.au P: 08 9200 4200
