Owners Of Kingsway Gardens Strata Plan 4 and Connelly

In the matter of Owners of Kingsway Gardens Strata Plan 4 and Connelly, the dispute involved an application by a lot proprietor under Section 7 of the Strata Titles Act 1985 (WA) for alteration to the structure of an individual lot. The applicant, who is the strata company, sought reinstatement of structural works that had been halted. The respondents contested this application, asserting that the strata company had not followed the statutory process correctly.

The key legal issues before the court were whether the application by the lot proprietor was properly made, and whether the strata company's council of owners had fulfilled its statutory obligations in considering the application. Specifically, the court needed to determine if the application was correctly served, if the required general meeting was convened, and whether the strata company's actions were in accordance with the provisions of the Act.

The court held that there is no prescribed form for the application under Section 7B of the Act, and while the email used for service did not strictly comply with Section 125(2), it was sufficiently served because it was discussed at a council meeting. The court further found that the council of owners did not convene a general meeting as required by Section 7 of the Act, and therefore, any resolution made by the council regarding the application was void. The court also ruled that the lot proprietor had no obligation to convene a meeting under Section 7B(3) of the Act, and thus the strata company's application for reinstatement of structural works was dismissed.

The final orders of the court were that the strata company's application for reinstatement of structural works was dismissed, and it was declared that any resolution made by the council of owners regarding the application was void and of no effect.