Decisions table

• The Owners – Strata Plan No 83678 owners corp
• Michael Khatib lot owner

The appeal by the owners corporation against the Tribunal's decision to make a by-law permitting the installation of an awning on common property was dismissed, with the Tribunal having found the owners corporation unreasonably refused to make the common property rights by-law.

• Jie Shen lot owner
• The Owners – Strata Plan No. 9751 owners corp

The appeal was dismissed and the stay order was lifted, with the Appeal Panel finding no grounds of appeal established by the lot owner regarding unauthorised installation of a garage door, security door, and bathroom renovations.

• Brett Lane lot owner
• Kattya Lane lot owner
• The Owners Strata Plan No 2404 owners corp

Leave to appeal was refused on ground 2, but the appeal was allowed on ground 1 regarding whether consent was required to amend an exclusive use by-law; the orders of the first instance tribunal were set aside and the proceedings remitted for re-hearing.

• Karimbla Properties (No.25) Pty Ltd lot owner
• The Owners-Strata Plan No. 71067 owners corp

The Tribunal dismissed the Owners Corporation's application for costs and rejected its application to rely on Reply submissions, finding no special circumstances warranted a costs order against Karimbla Properties.

• William Fegent lot owner
• The Owners - Strata Plan No 6544 owners corp

The Tribunal dismissed the applicant's application to invalidate resolutions relating to window replacement, finding that Motion 7 was a valid sustainability infrastructure resolution passed by simple majority and that the required consideration of costs under section 132B(1)(a) was met before the vote.

• Angela Nicholson lot owner
• The Owners - Strata Plan No 104042 owners corp
• Veinita Wodrow lot owner

Special By-Law 1 regulating short-term rental accommodation was declared invalid in its entirety as harsh, unconscionable and oppressive due to administration fee and bond provisions, and application for compulsory strata managing agent was dismissed.

• Philip Kentwell and Dorothy Kentwell lot owner
• The Owners – Strata Plan No. 2056 owners corp

The applicants succeeded in having Special By-law 31 declared invalid as harsh, unconscionable or oppressive; no order made for costs as special circumstances not established, but applicants entitled to benefit of section 104 SSMA; respondent ordered to remove the by-law within 30 days.

• Gokani-Robins Pty Ltd party
• ACG & KCG Investments Pty Ltd party
• The Owners – Strata Plan No 77109 owners corp

The Appeal Panel dismissed the appellants' application for costs and granted the respondent's application for costs, ordering the appellants to pay the respondent's costs of the appeal as agreed or as assessed.

• Philip Kentwell and Dorathy Kentwell lot owner
• The Owners - Strata Plan No. 2056 owners corp

Special By Law 31 concerning communication protocols was declared invalid pursuant to section 150(1) of the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 because it is harsh, unconscionable and oppressive in its operation.

• The Owners – Strata Plan No 12299 owners corp
• Stephen Alexander Mackay lot owner

The appeal was upheld on grounds of procedural unfairness regarding the Tribunal's consideration of section 150 SSMA and the unresolved downpipe issue, and the matter was remitted to the Consumer and Commercial Division for redetermination with no order as to costs.

• Gokani-Robins Pty Ltd lot owner
• ACG & KCG Investments Pty Ltd lot owner
• The Owners – Strata Plan No 77109 owners corp

The appeal against the Tribunal's dismissal of the application to declare Special By-Law 16 (a fire safety by-law) invalid as harsh, unconscionable or oppressive was dismissed, upholding the Tribunal's finding that the by-law was valid.

• Natalie Ciric lot owner
• The Owners - Strata Plan No. 67113 owners corp
• Joel Blanch lot owner

The second respondent was ordered to comply with Special By-law 8 by restoring carpet or floor coverings to the flooring in lot 17 or removing, treating or replacing the flooring so it complies with acoustic requirements, with testing to certify compliance within 60 days.

• Lorette Angela Lewis lot owner
• The Owners - Strata Plan No. 32924 owners corp

The appeal was allowed in part: Special By-Law 2 was declared invalid because the owners corporation lacked power to make it without the appellant's written consent, and Special By-Law 3 was declared void for uncertainty due to the absence of Annexure C; the appeal regarding Special By-Law 1 was dismissed.

• The Owners – Strata Plan No. 12185 owners corp
• Lisa Brown lot owner

The appeal by the Owners Corporation against the Tribunal's decision to approve a common property rights by-law for air conditioning installation was dismissed and leave to appeal was refused.

• Jin Beom Choi lot owner
• The Owners – Strata Plan No 53482 owners corp

The Appeal Panel dismissed the owners corporation's application for costs of the appeal, finding that special circumstances had not been established to depart from the usual principle that each party bears its own costs.

• Jin Beom Choi lot owner
• The Owners Strata Plan No 53482 owners corp

The appeal from the Tribunal's decision was dismissed; the Tribunal's order deeming a common property rights by-law passed under s 149(1)(b) of the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 was upheld, with the appellant's refusal to consent to the by-law found to be unreasonable.

• Noela Hunt lot owner
• Brian Hunt lot owner
• Cheryl Hunt lot owner
• The Owners - Strata Plan No 1158/84199 owners corp

Leave to appeal was refused and the appeal was dismissed; the Tribunal's decision that the owners corporation did not unreasonably refuse consent to install air-conditioning units on the balconies in non-compliant positions was upheld.

• The Owners-Strata Plan No 92334 owners corp
• Peng Zheng lot owner
• Ning Lu lot owner

The respondents were found to have contravened by-law 27 by parking vehicles on common property in breach of a Notice to Comply with By-laws dated 21 December 2022, and were ordered to pay a penalty of $550.

• Kevin Lenux lot owner
• The Owners - Strata Plan No 88786 owners corp

Both proceedings were dismissed; the tribunal found that Special By-law 1 prohibiting enclosure of the mezzanine level was valid and not harsh, unconscionable or oppressive, and that the owners corporation did not unreasonably refuse to make the modified renovation works by-law.

• The Owners - Strata Plan No. 84716 owners corp
• Delmont Purcell lot owner

The lot owner was found to have breached notices to comply with by-laws 5 and 7, and ordered to pay a penalty of $1,320 (8 penalty units for by-law 5 breach and 4 penalty units for by-law 7 breach).

• The Owners – Strata Plan No. 10717 owners corp
• Darryl William Mantell lot owner
• Diane Louise Mantell lot owner

The Tribunal dismissed the owners corporation's application to remove a bench from common property but granted the lot owners' application for a common property rights by-law relating to the subject area, finding the owners corporation's refusal of the by-law was unreasonable.

• The Owners – Strata Plan No. 77109 owners corp
• Gokani-Robins Pty Ltd party
• KCG Investments Pty Ltd party

The respondents' application for costs in relation to the appeal was dismissed, with the tribunal finding no special circumstances warranted a costs order despite the respondents being successful on the substantive appeal.

• BNK Café Restaurant Pty Ltd lot owner
• The Owners – Strata Plan No. 33676 owners corp

The appeal was dismissed and leave to appeal refused; the Appeal Panel upheld the Tribunal's finding that the owners corporation did not unreasonably refuse to make the proposed by-law amendment for electrical works that would have retrospectively sanctioned unauthorised work that interfered with common property and a neighbouring lot.

• Michael Lehner lot owner
• The Owners – Strata Plan No 65870 owners corp

The appeal against a costs order was dismissed; the Tribunal properly exercised its discretion in awarding costs to the respondent where the appellant withdrew his application late in the hearing after a fatal flaw in his case was exposed.

• Suzanne Lyon lot owner
• The Owners – Strata Plan No 11045 owners corp
• Ben Swanson lot owner

The Owners Corporation was ordered to take all necessary steps to require the owner of Lot 31 to comply with Special By-law 14 by reducing the pergola height to 2.7 metres within 6 months, and to clean the common property wall above the pergola within 2 months.

• The Owners – Strata Plan No. 77109 owners corp
• Gokani-Robins Pty Ltd lot owner

The appeal by the Owners Corporation against the Tribunal's decision declaring Special By-Law 17 invalid as harsh, unconscionable or oppressive was dismissed.

• The Owners – Strata Plan No 77109 owners corp
• Gokani-Robins Pty. Ltd. lot owner

The Appeal Panel made a costs order requiring the appellant to pay 20% of the respondent's costs of the stay application on the ordinary basis, finding special circumstances existed due to the appellant's late service of material but not warranting full indemnity costs.

• Lewis Elliot Franklin lot owner
• The Owners—Strata Plan No. 87497 owners corp

Paragraphs (1) and (2) of by-law 25 prohibiting cooking in lots were declared invalid as harsh, unconscionable and oppressive, being an unjustified blanket ban on cooking that limits fundamental property rights without protecting other occupants' use and enjoyment.

• Coscuez International Pty Ltd lot owner
• The Owners – Strata Plan No 46433 owners corp

The Tribunal made a common property rights by-law proposed by the lot owner, declared three special by-laws invalid as harsh, unconscionable or oppressive, and dismissed the owners corporation's application for removal of the swinging door.

• Tania Kathleen Anne Brown lot owner
• The Owners – Strata Plan 82527 owners corp

The Appeal Panel set aside the July 2022 orders by consent due to procedural irregularity in combining a civil penalty application with general orders, and remitted the matter for a fresh hearing in November 2022 with amended application to seek removal of dogs and compliance orders without the penalty.

• Adam Emery Kaye, Bella Rebecca Kaye, Robert George Kaye lot owner
• The Owners – Strata Plan No 4350 owners corp

The Supreme Court dismissed the plaintiffs' appeal from the NCAT Appeal Panel decision which had upheld the owners corporation's refusal to pass a by-law granting the plaintiffs exclusive use and enjoyment of additional roof area.

• Alan Norman lot owner
• The Owners – Strata Plan No 60182 owners corp

The application was dismissed; the tribunal found no grounds to invalidate the by-law, determined the flooring works were compliant, declined to award the applicant legal costs, and made no order for removal of committee members.

• The Owners - Strata Plan No 47383 owners corp
• Hugh James McCullum lot owner

The appeal was dismissed and the lot owner was entitled to enclose his car space under by-law 16 as it constituted a safety device and pest control measure, with no inconsistency with section 58 of the Strata Titles Act 1973.

• Gokani-Robins Pty Ltd lot owner
• KCG Investments Pty Ltd lot owner
• The Owners – Strata Plan No 77109 owners corp

Special By-Law 17 was declared invalid on and from 14 July 2020 as being harsh, unconscionable and oppressive, and the owners corporation was ordered to record this declaration on the common property title.

• GS & CS Holdings Pty Ltd lot owner
• The Owners – Strata Plan No. 63227 owners corp

The Appeal Panel dismissed the respondent's application for costs following dismissal of the appellant's appeal against a Tribunal decision refusing to prescribe a by-law concerning rooftop enclosures, finding no special circumstances warranted a costs order.

• Adam Emery Kaye lot owner
• Bella Rebecca Kaye lot owner
• Robert George Kaye lot owner
• The Owners – Strata Plan No 4350 owners corp

The Appeal Panel found special circumstances warranting costs and ordered the appellants to pay the respondent's costs of the appeal as agreed or as assessed.

• Diana Macleod lot owner
• The Owners – Strata Plan No 6544 owners corp

The applicant was ordered to pay 60% of the respondent's costs of the proceeding on the ordinary basis, as agreed or assessed, due to special circumstances including the applicant's failure to clearly identify the grounds for the application and failure to serve evidence in accordance with directions.

• GS & CS Holdings Pty Ltd lot owner
• The Owners – Strata Plan No. 63227 owners corp

The appeal against the Tribunal's dismissal of an application to prescribe an amended by-law was dismissed because consent from all lot owners benefiting under the original by-law was a precondition to any lawful change, and such consent had not been obtained.

• The Owners - Strata Plan No. 58615 owners corp
• Herlina Almin lot owner

The applicant failed to establish that the respondent was feeding wild birds on her lot or common property, and proceedings were dismissed.

• EKG Pastries Pty Ltd lot owner
• The Owners – Strata Plan No. 87145 owners corp

By-law 29 was declared invalid on the grounds that it breached section 83(2) of the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 by imposing differential water usage charges not proportionate to the lot owner's unit entitlement.

• Coscuez International Pty Ltd lot owner
• The Owners-Strata Plan No 46433 owners corp

Appeal allowed, decision under appeal set aside in part, and matter remitted to tribunal to determine whether proposed common property rights by-laws were unreasonably refused and whether special by-laws 8, 9 and 10 are harsh, unconscionable or oppressive.

• Alicia Fong lot owner
• The Owners – Strata Plan No. 82783 owners corp

The Tribunal found the Owners Corporation unreasonably refused to make a common property rights by-law and ordered that special by-law 29 be prescribed as a change to the by-laws of the strata scheme, permitting the applicant to extend a pergola and awning structure in her courtyard.

• Roger Harris lot owner
• The Owners-Strata Plan No 34056 owners corp

The appeal was dismissed and leave to appeal was refused; the Tribunal's decision dismissing the application to invalidate Motion 16 regarding parking on common property was upheld on the basis that the appellant failed to establish any non-compliance with the Strata Schemes Management Act or Regulations in relation to the meetings.

• Andrew Bruce lot owner
• Alice Barclay lot owner
• The Owners – Strata Plan No. 98803 owners corp

The Tribunal declared that the applicants may keep their French Bulldog Peach on their lot, finding that the Owners Corporation unreasonably withheld approval by incorrectly interpreting the by-law as permitting only one animal per lot and failing to consider whether the animal would unreasonably interfere with other occupants' use and enjoyment of their properties.

• The Owners - Strata Plan No. 36965 owners corp
• Jennifer Alexander lot owner

The Appeal Panel dismissed the respondent's application for costs of the appeal, finding no special circumstances warranted an award of costs against the Owners Corporation despite the appeal being lodged out of time.

• The Owners – Strata Plan No. 21367 owners corp
• Nathan James Letchford lot owner

Both applications for civil penalties were dismissed as an abuse of process because they duplicated earlier penalty proceedings that had been finally determined on 22 February 2021.

• J's Absolute Services Pty Ltd manager
• The Owners – Strata Plan No 67246 owners corp

Appeal allowed and the costs order made against the appellant at first instance was set aside; each party to bear their own costs.

• Robert Roden lot owner
• The Owners – Strata Plan No. 55773 owners corp

The application to invalidate parts of By-Law 14 (Keeping an Animal) was dismissed as the applicant failed to establish that the by-law provisions were beyond power or harsh, unconscionable or oppressive.

• Olivera Kencevski lot owner
• The Owners Strata Plan No. 488 owners corp

The Tribunal ordered that the respondent pay the applicant's costs as agreed or as assessed, finding that the rejection of the Special By-law lacked a tenable basis in fact or law and the proceedings were necessitated by the respondent's unreasonable refusal.

• Michelle Gelder lot owner
• The Owners - Strata Plan No 38308 owners corp

The Appeal Panel awarded costs to the appellant lot owner against the owners corporation for both the appeal and first instance proceedings on the basis of special circumstances, and ordered that the owners corporation not levy contributions on the appellant's lot for its costs.