Blog
‘New Condo Act’: Tight Deadlines for Corporations to Adopt and Disclose Their Budget
In this installment on the changes Bill 106 may bring to the existing Condominium Act, we focus on the changes expected to affect how corporations adopt and disclose their yearly budgets. Bill 106 proposes to add an entire section on corporations’ budgets. This is new as the present Condominium Act is nearly silent on this question. […]
Police Cannot Snoop Around in Common Elements without a Warrant or Permission
In a criminal proceeding, the Ontario Court of Appeal recently rendered a decision which should be very interesting to condominium corporations. Basically, the courts had to determine whether police officers were authorized to enter the corporation’s common elements without invitation or warrant to conduct a criminal investigation. In this context, the Court had to answer the […]
Dog Evicted from Condominium Because the Occupant Failed to Prove Her Disability
Many condominium corporations have rules imposing weight restrictions on pets allowed in the condominium. These restrictions often oppose occupants who wish to keep their pets and corporations who have a duty to enforce their governing documents. This is exactly what happened in the recent court case Simcoe Condominium Corporation No. 89 v. Dominelli. Of particular interest in this case is […]
Cockroaches in Toronto, Bedbugs in Ottawa…
In the last 10 days, two court decisions came out dealing with bug infestations. One out of Toronto and the other one out of Ottawa. It is interesting to compare how each corporation addressed the issue and how differently the judge addressed the issue of legal costs. The Toronto Case The first decision came out […]
‘New Condo Act’: Directors’ Qualifications and Disclosure Obligations
Bill 106 was introduced at Queen’s Park on May 27, 2015. If adopted, it will introduce sweeping changes to the governance and management of condominiums in Ontario. Since the introduction of this Bill, we have been blogging on the proposed amendments. In this post, we analyse what changes may be made to the qualifications and […]
Amendments to the Condo Act: the New Condo Authority and Condo Tribunal
As announced in our post of May 27, the province of Ontario finally released its much anticipated proposed amendments to the Condominium Act. If made into law, Bill 106 will serve to amend our 15 year old Condominium Act as well as other legislation pertaining to condominiums in Ontario. For instance, Bill 106 would amend certain portions […]
Email Exchanges Between Directors Can Be Defamatory
Directors should be careful about what they email to one another or what they email to owners. There are plenty of instances where communications between directors (or communications to owners) have lead to defamation lawsuits. Defamation covers any communication that tends to lower the esteem ordinary members of the public may have of someone. Sometimes, even innuendos […]
Should Your Condo Corporation Pay HST If It’s Not Specifically Included in a Quote?
Have you ever faced a situation where a contractor requested taxes over the quoted price? How much should your condominium corporation budget for if all that the contractor quoted was a flat amount without details as to whether it includes HST or not? HST has to be paid and parties cannot contract out of it. However, […]
What to Do When AirBNB Moves into Your Condominium Complex?
Many condominium corporations have had to struggle with owners (or occupants) leasing their units on short-term basis, through AirBNB or other similar short-term rental organizations. These kinds of rentals increase traffic and the burden on the rest of the condominium community, while reducing the safety and security of all. This post aims at providing corporations […]
Employers Must Display Employment Standard Information
To ensure that employers understand their obligations and that employees know their rights, the Ontario Minister of Labour has published an Employment Standards Poster entitled “Employment Standards in Ontario”. If your condominium corporation has employees (such as a Superintendent or cleaning staff), it is required to post and distribute this poster. The poster describes important rights […]