A Burnaby strata’s 2022 annual general meeting was "invalid," but the BC Civil Resolution Tribunal has declined to do anything about it.
Leslie Gordon, a co-owner of an apartment at Central Park Place on Barker Avenue, applied to the tribunal for a declaration her strata’s 2022 AGM was invalid and an order for the strata to hold a “proper” 2022 AGM, according to a ruling Tuesday.
The strata announced in February that its 2022 AGM would be held in March by Zoom.
Citing COVID-19 safety restrictions, the strata said owners would vote ahead of time using two secret ballot forms. One was for electing the strata council and the other for voting on two resolutions: the approval of the strata’s operating budget and the transfer of $100,000 from the operating surplus to the strata’s contingency reserve fund (CRF).
Under a provision of the COVID-19 Related Measures Act, stratas are allowed to conduct electronic and remote meetings, but Gordon argued the strata’s 2022 AGM didn’t allow owners to participate, make motions, amend resolutions, nominate themselves or others for strata council or cast votes as required by the Strata Properties Act, the strata’s bylaws and the COVID-19 Related Measures Act.
Tribunal member Kristin Gardner agreed.
“While the strata says that owners were permitted to speak at both the pre-AGM meeting and the AGM itself, I find that communication was essentially meaningless, given the advanced voting process established by the strata,” Gardner stated in a Nov. 8 ruling. “The voting ballots distributed in the AGM notice package were pre-printed with the nominees for the strata council and the wording of the proposed resolutions, and owners could vote immediately after receiving the notice package. So, there was no opportunity to nominate other council members or amend the budget or CRF resolutions at either the pre-AGM meeting or the AGM.”
Although she found the advanced voting process used by the strata wasn’t allowed under either the Strata Properties Act or the strata’s own bylaws, Gardner said the tribunal didn’t have the jurisdiction to make the declaratory order Gordon was asking for.
Gardner also declined to set aside the election of the strata council at the AGM or the approval of the operating budget.
“I find it would serve no meaningful purpose to set aside the election of the strata council members or the approval of the operating budget,” Gardner wrote. “I agree with the strata’s submission that by the date of this decision the strata council members will have already served a large portion of their term and the annual budget will have been implemented and utilized. If I were to make an order for a new AGM, I would order it take place within 90 days. That would be approximately when the 2023 AGM will take place in any event, where a new strata council and a new budget will be voted on.”
While Gardner dismissed Gordon’s claims, she said Gordon was “successful on the main issue of whether the 2022 AGM was invalid” and therefore entitled to have her tribunal fees reimbursed by the strata.
Gardner noted the tribunal has ruled on "several" disputes about AGM voting rights during the pandemic and "clearly found that strata corporations must hold general meetings in a manner that permits owner attendance and participation."
The CRT is an online, quasi-judicial tribunal that hears small claims disputes of $5,000 or less and strata property disputes of any amount.
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