By-Law Drafting

By-laws are the rules that everyone in the scheme must follow, and are adopted by putting forward a resolution, getting the required number of votes, and registration at Landgate.

Almost all strata title schemes have a set of unique by-laws that are specific to that scheme. There are many cases in the State Administrative Tribunal that involve disputes regarding the interpretation and validity of scheme by-laws.

In order to avoid these disputes, it is important that the by-laws are clear, and that there is a power in the Strata Titles Act or another written law to make the by-law.

Costly disputes can be avoided if a lawyer is engaged to draft the by-laws for a strata scheme. The cost of a by-law is generally around $500 to $1,000, depending on the complexity of the by-law, and may result in a savings of thousands of dollars in legal disputes and arguments in the State Administrative Tribunal in the future.

The strata company is required to enforce the by-laws, and may make an application to the State Administrative Tribunal if an owner has not complied with a by-law or if the by-law is alleged to be invalid. We may provide advice about whether a by-law may be invalid, or whether a by-law has been breached.