Q: What about proxies that come in after the mentioned deadline time? 

A: The Act is silent on this question and there are different schools of thought on this.  On the one hand, many corporations accept proxies up until the time of voting.  Other corporations refuse to accept proxies submitted after the deadline for registration.

Q: When speaking about arrears for 30 days or more. Does this include any amount, i.e. $30 outstanding?

A: The amount is not relevant.  Section 49 of the Act states that an owner is not entitled to vote if any contributions have been in arrears for 30 days or more at the date of the meeting.

Q: What if the proxy is another unit owner that is in arrears? Is the proxy still able to vote on behalf of the unit owner?

A: The entitlement to vote and to appoint a proxy is dependent on the owner’s right to vote.  As the proxyholder is the agent for the owner, it does not matter if the proxyholder is not entitled to vote on his/her own behalf.

Q:  If a proxy holder signs in and the proxy is signed, but no names (for election) ticked, then you can ask them to tick the director(s) they want to vote for? The owner has authorized them to vote on their behalf -- is this correct?

A:  Definitely not! The proxyholder cannot tick off the directors' names.  The owner authorizes the proxyholder to vote on the owner’s behalf for directors selected by the owner.

• Property managers should not be handling any sort of cash payments.  In the rare occasion where a cash payment or transfer is made, a itemized receipt must be provided;
• Board members and property management must ensure that the lines of communication are open and frequently used;
• Annual general meetings should occur on a timely and consistent basis;
• Property management should never authorize an action or sign a document on behalf of a corporation's board;
• For any significant work on behalf of a condominium corporation, tendering is a must.  Additionally, board members or the corporation's solicitor should do their due diligence on all companies providing quotes;
• Paid work performed by unit owners or a company owned/directed by a unit owner is not recommended due to potential conflicts of interest.  If any paid work is performed by a unit owner, it must be disclosed to all unit owners and the payee must be prepared to answer any anomaly or divergence from market practice; and
• If any unit owner is suspicious of a property manager's conduct, it is important to document the concerns and raise the issues with the board as soon as possible.

Unfortunately, there are no foolproof methods to preventing fraud in condominiums.  That said, implementing some of the aforementioned policies, in addition to seeking advice from legal counsel, is highly recommended.      

Heenan Blaikie’s Toronto office has created a website for this event and visitors can view the keynote panel speeches, the Green Marketing & Advertising Workshop, and get more information on the speakers.

For more information on this event, please contact Wendy Reed at wreed@heenan.ca

Date: September 23, 2011

Location: Hampton Inn Ottawa & Conference Centre

The presenters also include:

• Christy Allen, Nelligan O’Brien Payne
• Nancy Houle, Nelligan O’Brien Payne
• John Peart, Nelligan O’Brien Payne

Moderated by James Davidson, Nelligan O’Brien Payne

Attendees will be able to earn 2 credits towards the Law Society of Upper Canada Continuing Education Credit Programme. This event is complimentary for ACMO Members and Guests.

Please register online using the ACMO registration form.

The conference, the most important and influential legal conference for Solicitors in Eastern Ontario, is organized by the County of Carleton Law Association and will be held in Fairmont Le Chateau Montebello in Montebello, Quebec, on Friday May 13th and Saturday May 14th.

Upcoming Events

Heenan Blaikie is Building: A Construction Business Seminar – November 24, 2010 – Toronto

In this half day seminar, lawyers from various Heenan Blaikie practice groups will give you the information you need to know on the latest developments affecting your construction properties. You will hear presentations from our Litigation, Condo, Intellectual Property, Business Law and Labour & Employment groups that will help you answer the following questions:

 ► Why should you take your construction contracts seriously?

► What are the latest trends in procurement law?

► Who actually owns your project’s design?

► What should you do in response to a workplace accident?

► What do you need to know about construction liens?

► How can you prepare for (and avoid) construction claims?

RSVP:

Online by November 17, 2010, at events.heenan.ca/2010-11-24.htm

Inquiries:

Michelle Stultz

Phone: 416 643.6831

Date: Wednesday November 24, 2010

Time: 8:15 A.M. - 1:00 P.M.

Location: Heenan Blaikie LLP

Bay Adelaide Centre

333 Bay Street, 29th Floor

Toronto, Ontario M5H 2T4

This seminar is complimentary for friends and clients of the firm, and will be made available by Webex and Teleconference upon request.

Space is limited.

PM Expo - December 1-3, 2010 - Toronto: Geza Banfai, a partner in Heenan Blaikie’s Infrastructure & Construction Litigation practice group and Denise Lash, a partner in Heenan Blaikies Real Estate practice group, will speak at the upcoming PM Expo (The Property Management Exposition and Conference).Geza will speak on the topic of “Construction Law Review: An Update on Contracts, Risk Management, and Code & Regulatory Challenges” and Denise will speak on “Legal Issues for Condominiums: ‘What you don't know can hurt you’”. For more information, please visit pmexpo.com.

HB in the News 

Howard Krupat, a partner in Heenan Blaikie’s Infrastructure & Construction Litigation practice group is quoted in an article entitled "Unanticipated site conditions can lead to delays, legal action", appearing in the November 4, 2010 issue of the Daily Commercial News.

Denise Lash wrote an article entitled “Welcoming input brings welcome results” in the October 2010 issue of Condo Business magazine.