Must meetings be held online or what are the options?

Covid has come and gone, do we still have to hold meetings online or what are the options?

There are various options for a Body Corporate to hold a general meeting.

  • Meeting completely in person
  • Meeting completely online
  • Hybrid meeting – some people attending in person and some people attending online

The online version became possible when the STSM Act was promulgated in 2016 and Bodies Corporate really mostly started using this option when Covid struck.

 

PMR 17

(10)  A body corporate may make arrangements for attendance at an annual or special general meeting by telephone or any other method, if the method—

  • is accessible to all members and other persons entitled to attend the meeting;
  • permits all persons participating in the meeting to communicate with each other during the meeting; and
  • permits the chairperson to confirm, with reasonable certainty, the identity of the participants.

(11)  A person who attends a meeting as provided under sub-rule (10) is considered present in person at the meeting. –

 

Practically a number of schemes continued to meet online seeing that it is easier to access from wherever

the owners are situated at the time of the meeting and thus saving on travelling costs and ensuring

obtaining a quorum for the meeting.   Hybrid meetings are also an option but the Trustees need to then

ensure that the online side of the meeting is available at the venue and participants can communicate with

each other effectively even if some are present in person and some are present online.

It is basically up to the Trustees to decide how they want to hold the meeting.