Our Body Corporate approved customized Conduct Rules and customized Management Rules before 7 Oct 2016 – in other words at that stage it was only filed at the Deeds Office and not approved by CSOS. Which rules have more weight – our customized rules or the prescribed rules of the Act?
Correct – before 7 Oct 2016 rules only had to be approved by the Body Corporate and then filed at the Deeds Office – the Deeds Office did not scrutinize or approve them. Currently – after 7 Oct 2016 rules have to be approved by CSOS as well before they are enforceable.
Getting back to the question – the Act itself carries the most weight; then the prescribed Management rules and then the customized rules.
In other words; you cannot have anything in your customized rules that are in contravention with either the prescribed Management rules or the STSM Act. Your rules can however be stricter than the prescribed rules.
For example – if the Prescribed Management rules say you don’t have to be a member of the BC to be a Trustees then your customized rules can say that you have to be a member (in other words not contravening but just stricter)
Another example – if the Prescribed Management rules say nominations for Trustees must be handed in at least 48 hours before the meeting then the customized rules can say that it has to be in at least 72 hours before the meeting, but it cannot say that it can be handed in at least 24 hours before the meeting.