Broken Pool Promises Create More than a Few Ripples

Trentelman v The Owners – Strata Plan No 76700 [2021] NSWCA 242

GoStrata’s CaseWatch is a short, sharp and easy-to-understand review of important and interesting Court and Tribunal decisions affecting Australian strata title stakeholders.

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Quick Read

This NSW Court of Appeal decision about a serviced hotel/motel apartment complex in northern NSW that was being developed in stages is about a dispute over which lot owners could use the pool between the hotel/motel operator and the strata owners. The primary issue was whether the strata corporation approved changes to the ongoing redevelopment that altered pool access rights [detrimentally] because of the representations made about those things at the strata meeting. Because of the way motions were drafted, other documents that were supplied, and what was said, the Court of Appeal decided that the hotel/motel operator’s promises at the strata meeting guaranteed the strata owners and corporation permanent rights to use the pool despite voting to give them away as part of the redevelopment proposal. 

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Implications

The key implications of this strata case are as follows.

• The principles of proprietary estoppel can apply in strata corporations where actions are taken to the strata building’s detriment relying on promised expectations.

• The promises that can be relied on can include motions, supporting documents and things said at strata meetings.