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Today: Oct 06, 2012
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Today: Oct 06, 2012
| SECTIONAL TITLE SCHEME CONDUCT RULES |
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 Every sectional title scheme has rules which bind the body corporate and the owners and occupiers of all units in the scheme. There are two sets of rules, namely the management rules and the conduct rules. The management rules deal essentially with the management of the body corporate and the scheme by the trustees. The conduct rules deal with the conduct of the owners and occupiers of the units in the scheme. Generally speaking, the purpose of the conduct rules is to ensure that owners and occupiers do not use their sections or the common property in such a way that it infringes on the other owners and occupiers rights to the use and enjoyment of their own sections and the common property.  It is the duty of the trustees (as representatives of the body corporate) to enforce the conduct rules. What remedies are available to the body corporate when an owner or occupier fails to adhere to the conduct rules? This question was considered by the High Court in a recent case.  The body corporate instituted legal proceedings against the owner and occupiers of a sectional title flat. The tenants rented the flat from the owner. The body corporate alleged that the tenants were continually breaching the conduct rules by engaging in unlawful activities including drug dealing and prostitution. The body corporate proved that the tenants were operating as escorts and that there was a constant stream of visitors to the flat during all hours of the day and night. The body corporate applied to the court for an interdict (court order) which would compel the tenants to cease conducting an escort business from the flat, and, in the event of them failing to comply, for their eviction.  In other words the body corporate wanted the court to issue an order which stated that unless the tenants ceased breaching the conduct rules by operating as escorts they would be removed from the flat.  One of the main issues that the court had to decide was whether a court was entitled to evict owners or tenants of a sectional title unit who continually contravened the conduct rules. The court decided that in terms of our current law they could not evict such persons. However, the judge stated that he was entitled to issue an order directing the tenants (occupiers) to comply with the rules, and if they failed to do so, they would be in contempt of the court order and could be arrested.  So, although the court decided that it could not evict owners and occupiers of sectional title units for contravening the conduct rules, body corporates are not without remedy against such persons. The body corporate can obtain a court order which will force the owners / occupiers to comply with the rules and if they fail to do so, they can be arrested for being in contempt of the court order.  It is interesting to note that the judge also commented that there was a pressing "social need" in South Africa to introduce a law which would enable sectional title owners and body corporates to enforce compliance with their conduct rules and evict owners / occupiers where such persons constantly and deliberately contravened the rules and failed to pay the levies. |
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