Australian Law Reform Commission releases report on rights and freedoms

The Australian Law Reform Commission has just published its report on Traditional Rights and Freedoms—Encroachments by Commonwealth Laws. The report identifies rights, freedoms, and privileges recognized by the common law, examines commonwealth (federal) laws that may infringe them, and considers potential approaches to restricting rights and freedoms. The report’s goals are summarized in the following terms in the ALRC’s press release: In this far-reaching inquiry, the Australian Law Reform Commission was asked to identify and critically Read more…

BC Supreme Court orders strata corporation to be wound up

In a brief oral judgment handed down last month, the Supreme Court of British Columbia has ordered the winding up of a strata corporation with a liquidator, even though winding up commanded less than unanimous support among the owners. The Owners, Strata Plan NW422 v Khlybov, 2016 BCSC 285, involved a strata corporation with 21 strata-lot owners. The court briefly set out the basis of the application in two paragraphs: The petitioners, who are a strata Read more…

Strata corporation’s lien ruled invalid for including improper amounts

In a recent judgment, the BC Supreme Court has underscored the importance of careful recordkeeping and adherence to statutory procedures for strata corporations. In Terry v The Owners, Strata Plan NW 309, 2016 BCSC 237, the court discharged a lien filed under section 116 of the Strata Property Act because it apparently contained improper amounts for discharged fees, fines, and interest charges. Facts and issues Terry involved “a long history of disputes” between the petitioner strata-lot owner Read more…

A review of major changes to condominium governance in Ontario’s Bill 106

As noted in a previous blog post, Ontario passed major amendments to its Condominium Act, 1998 late last year. Bill 106 (PDF)—the Protecting Condominium Owners Act, 2015—will see sweeping changes to Ontario’s condominium law in the areas of dispute resolution, consumer protection, condominium-management regulation, and condominium finances. Some of the most interesting changes in Bill 106 concern condominium governance. This blog post highlights governance changes that introduce new ideas into Ontario law, which—when they come into Read more…

BCLI welcomes bill to implement its Report on Unnecessary Requirements for Sworn Statements

The British Columbia Law Institute is pleased by the introduction of Bill 5, the Miscellaneous Statutes (Signed Statements) Amendment Act, 2016, into the legislative assembly. Once enacted, Bill 5 will substantially implement the recommendations of BCLI’s Report on Unnecessary Requirements for Sworn Statements (2006). “On behalf of BCLI,” noted board of directors chair Prof. Joost Blom, QC, “I am grateful to see the legislature take up the reforms proposed in BCLI’s report. Their adoption will Read more…