Part 57 published on 01/03/17
Fines were not properly imposed and were therefor invalid
This was a dispute respecting fines imposed by a strata corporation for alleged non-payment of monthly strata fees and special assessments.
The lower Court judge held that the fines had been properly levied, but required more evidence (to be provided in a separate enforcement proceeding) to determine the proper amounts of the fines.
The owner appealed, and the Court of Appeal held that the fines were totally invalid. The Court of Appeal said that the strata corporation had failed to comply with the procedures in section 135 of the Strata Property Act, before imposing the fines. The Court said:
Section 135 of the (Strata Property Act) sets out the procedure a strata corporation must comply with before imposing a fine for contravention of a bylaw. The provision is not complex and its requirements are straightforward. A fine must not be imposed unless the strata corporation has received a complaint about the alleged contravention of a bylaw and given the owner or tenant written particulars of the complaint with a reasonable opportunity to be heard in response, including a hearing if one is requested. The Act does not specify the form in which notice of the particulars of complaint must be given, nor does it define what constitutes a reasonable opportunity to answer the complaint.
In my view, an owner or tenant who may be subject to a fine must be given notice that the strata corporation is contemplating the imposition of a fine for the alleged contravention of an identified bylaw or rule, and particulars sufficient to call to the attention of the owner or tenant the contravention at issue. In addition, the owner or tenant must be given a reasonable opportunity to answer the complaint. What constitutes a reasonable opportunity to be heard in response is a case-specific inquiry that must take account of the nature of the alleged contravention, the context in which the violation is said to have occurred, and the time that might reasonably be required to gather information or evidence needed to answer it.
