Strata Property Update 2021

Course Chairs
Lisa N. Mackie — Alexander Holburn Beaudin + Lang LLP, Vancouver
Jennifer L. Neville — Hamilton & Company, New Westminster

About the Course Chairs
Lisa Mackie is the leader of the Strata Property Practice Group and a member of the firm's Insurance and Real Estate Practices. Her primary areas of practice are Strata Property Law and Residential Tenancy Law. At Alexander Holburn, Lisa chairs the Women's Forum, a group dedicated to promoting business development and networking opportunities among our female lawyers, paralegals, and female clients. Prior to joining Alexander Holburn, Lisa worked in the law reform field as a legal researcher with the British Columbia Law Institute and the Canadian Centre for Elder Law Studies.

Lisa has represented clients at all levels of court in BC on strata property and residential tenancy law matters. Lisa also represents and advises clients on human rights complaints, privacy disputes, employment disputes, defamation matters, and arbitrations under the Strata Property Act. Lisa has earned significant recognition in the legal industry, and has been a trusted legal resource for various print and television media publications on strata property and residential tenancy issues including: CBC Radio, CBC News, Canadian Lawyer Magazine, Canadian Apartment Magazine, Canadian Real Estate Wealth Magazine, CityTV Breakfast Television, Times Colonist, Metro Vancouver, The Province, Canadian Property Management Magazine, and the CHOA Journal.

Jennifer Neville has been providing advice to strata corporations and owners since 2003. She assists strata corporations and owners with a broad range of strata property issues, including bylaw and resolution drafting, compliance with the Strata Property Act, repairs, collections, strata financing, disputes, and Civil Resolution Tribunal claims.

Jennifer regularly gives seminars for organizations such as the Professional Association of Managing Agents, the Strata Property Agents of BC, and the Condominium Home Owners Association. She is a contributing author to CLEBC's British Columbia Strata Property Practice Manual. In addition, she is a Director of the Condominium Home Owners Association.

Jennifer's successful practice depends, not only on knowledge of the law, but her sharp ability to listen, communicate effectively, and respond to her clients' individual legal needs. Jennifer takes pride in providing tailored solutions that are practical, yet strategic.

Elder
George Harris — Stz'uminus First Nation

I am George Frank Harris Sr. My traditional name is Whul Qul Latza passed on to me from my great-grandfather who was born in 1871. He was from Lyackson. I honour and respect the sacred inheritance that has been passed on to me which is called Snuw'uy'ulh. This is our traditional teachings which is our sacred inheritance given to us by our ancestors.

I currently work as a cultural/spiritual elder for Correctional Services Canada. I am also on the Tsow Tun Lelum Board of Directors as the Vice President and the Nutsumaat Tribal Council on the Council of Elders.

I follow our traditional way of life. I honour and respect our traditional sacred ceremonies and I am grateful and appreciate that this is part of our lives. This is when much of our Snuw'uy'ulh is taught to us and we are to listen and watch what is being said at these sacred ceremonies. I am proud to be from Stz'uminus First Nation and part of the Coast Salish Nations.

Faculty
Anil K. Aggarwal — Alexander Holburn Beaudin + Lang LLP, Vancouver
Alexander J. Chang — Lesperance Mendes, Vancouver 
Philip Dougan — Citadel Law Corporation, Vancouver
Matthew D. Fischer — Fischer and Company Law Corporation, Kelowna
Veronica P. Franco — Clark Wilson LLP, Vancouver
Wesley McMillan — Allen/McMillan Litigation Counsel, Vancouver
Oscar Miklos — Refresh Law, Burnaby 
Adrienne M. Murray — Hamilton & Company, New Westminster
Shawn M. Smith — Cleveland Doan LLP, White Rock

Click here for full faculty bios

Welcome and Land Acknowledgement (9:00 – 9:10)

Elder George Harris — Stz'uminus First Nation

Strata Property Basics (9:10 – 10:05)

• what is a strata corporation?
  • how is it formed?
  • who "owns" it?
  • different types: apartment, townhome, bareland, commercial, sections
• understanding the strata plan
  • how to read it
  • common property versus strata lot versus limited common property
• bylaws
  • what are they and why do they matter?
  • how are they passed?
  • how are they enforced?
  • how are rules different?
• how are decisions made?
  • general meetings: AGM & SGM
  • voting thresholds
  • strata council decisions: what can it decide?
• what is the strata council and what does it do?
  • how is it formed?
  • duties and responsibilities
• finances
  • what are strata fees and how are they determined?
  • operating fund versus contingency reserve fund
  • special levies
  • how is money collected?
• repair and maintenance
  • who is responsible for what?
  • what does it mean to "repair"?
• insurance
  • what does the strata corporation insure?
  • who pays the deductible?

Shawn M. Smith — Cleveland Doan LLP, White Rock

BREAK (10:05 – 10:15)

General Meetings: What You Need to Know (10:15 – 10:45)

• the future of electronic general meetings
• rules of order
• amending agendas
• motions from the floor
• amendments, etc.
• proxies

Veronica P. Franco — Clark Wilson LLP, Vancouver

BREAK (10:45 – 10:55)

Key Civil Resolution Tribunal Decisions (10:55 – 11:35)

• bylaw enforcement—tips to ensure that fines will be enforceable
• chargeback—damage and insurance deductibles
• recovering legal fees
• dealing with smoking complaints

Adrienne M. Murray — Hamilton & Company, New Westminster

Strata Hotels (11:35 – 12:05)

• the Pierce decision
• the Whistler decision
• how strata hotels are set up and how to address the issues that arise

Wesley J. McMillan — Allen/McMillan Litigation Counsel, Vancouver

LUNCH (12:05 – 12:45)

The ABC's of Practice Before the CRT: Practice Tips for Lawyers (12:45 – 1:25)

• Can you Hear Me Now?: Navigating the s. 34.1 hearing and other pre-filing requirements
• Rules are Rules: Key requirements to keep in mind under the CRT Rules of Procedure
• Help! I Need Somebody: Assisting your clients as a "helper" or formal representative
• Not in my Backyard: Useful jurisdictional arguments and preliminary issue applications
• Get it Together: How to organize your file for facilitation and adjudication
• The Price of Doing Business: Obtaining costs at the CRT

Anil K. Aggarwal — Alexander Holburn Beaudin + Lang LLP, Vancouver
Lisa N. Mackie — Alexander Holburn Beaudin + Lang LLP, Vancouver

Rental Hardship (1:25 – 1:55)

• making a hardship application as an owner
• assessing hardship as a strata council
• consequences of missed response deadlines and challenging a strata council's decision

Oscar Miklos — Refresh Law, Burnaby

BREAK (1:55 - 2:05)

Top Five Surprising Cases Every Strata Corporations's Lawyer Should Know  (2:05 – 2:35)

• #5—standard of correctness applies to CRT strata claims on judicial review
• #4—strata corporations may claim reasonable costs of enforcing bylaws
• #3—no limitation period for fines and other penalties under the SPA
• #2—no pre-incorporation fiduciary duties on developers?
• #1—the strict application of the SPA can be significantly unfair (s. 164)

Alexander J. Chang — Lesperance Mendes, Vancouver

BREAK (2:35 – 2:45)

Handover from Owner-Developer to Strata Council and the First Annual General Meeting (2:45 – 3:15)

Top pitfalls and missed opportunities:

• First AGM not held by statutory deadline. SPA protects against owner-developer improperly delaying democratic control by the ownership (ss. 16, 17 and Reg. 3.1(2))
  • owner-developer perspective—hold the first AGM as soon as feasible to avoid liability—penalties quickly increase to $1,000 per week
  • owner perspective—call the meeting directly per s. 17 to enforce statutory penalties
• Under-budgeting. Interim period expenses exceeded the developer's interim budget. SPA enforces a high standard of adequate and accurate budgeting, disclosure of expected expenses to purchasers, fiscal responsibility, and expense transparency.
• Assess the state of strata finances financial records.
• Identify deadlines for deficiency and warranty claims, and ensure adequate inspection and reporting.
• Confirm provision, completeness and adequacy of records, documentation and keys.
• Check the bylaws and operations, including insurance, section operations, division of expenses, and completion of phases.
• Issues regarding long term contracts, property use assignments, and ongoing services.

Matthew D. Fischer — Fischer and Company Law Corporation, Kelowna

BREAK (3:15 – 3:25)

Top Five Topics for Solicitors (3:25 – 3:55)

• crane swing agreements
• strata corporation borrowing
• cost sharing agreements
• alteration and indemnity agreements
• parking leases

Jennifer L. Neville — Hamilton & Company, New Westminster

Hot Topics Roundtable (3:55 – 4:25)

• COVID vaccine passports or related restrictions for strata corporation meetings and common facilities
• mail-in ballots and "restricted proxy" voting
• video surveillance—recent decision of the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner in The Owners, Strata Plan BCS 1964 (Icon 1 and 2)

Moderator: Philip Dougan — Citadel Law Corporation, Vancouver
Anil K. Aggarwal — Alexander Holburn Beaudin + Lang LLP, Vancouver
Alexander J. Chang — Lesperance Mendes, Vancouver 
Matthew D. Fischer — Fischer and Company Law Corporation, Kelowna
Veronica P. Franco — Clark Wilson LLP, Vancouver
Lisa N. Mackie — Alexander Holburn Beaudin + Lang LLP, Vancouver
Wesley J. McMillan — Allen/McMillan Litigation Counsel, Vancouver
Oscar Miklos — Refresh Law, Burnaby 
Adrienne M. Murray — Hamilton & Company, New Westminster
Jennifer L. Neville — Hamilton & Company, New Westminster
Shawn M. Smith — Cleveland Doan LLP, White Rock

Closing Comments (4:25 – 4:30)

Lisa N. Mackie — Alexander Holburn Beaudin + Lang LLP, Vancouver
Jennifer L. Neville — Hamilton & Company, New Westminster