By the Paddocks Club team

Below are examples of two questions on the Paddocks Club discussion forum, to show you what is available to our Community members!

Delivery of AGM or SGM notice via registered email

Member’s question:

Good day Paddocks,

If an owner has a registered email address, is it acceptable to send all notices for AGM’s and SGM’s to this email address? Would we still have to send the notice via registered mail to a postal address?

Graham’s answer:

Dear member,

Section 6 (2) to (4) of the Sectional Titles Schemes Management Act apply here.

The effect of 6(2) and (3) is that if there is a special or unanimous resolution on the meeting agenda, notice must always be:

(a) delivered by hand to a member;

(b) sent by pre-paid registered post to the address of a member’s section in the relevant scheme; or

(c) sent by pre-paid registered post to a physical or postal address in the Republic of South Africa that a member has chosen in writing for the purposes of such notice.

Section 6(4) makes provision for delivery in digital format, but does not suggest that the body corporate can send the notice of the meeting only in digital form. On the contrary, the words “in addition” used in this provision make it clear that the notice by one of the three methods specified in 6(3) must always be given, and in addition notice may be given by fax or email.

Regards
Graham

Can trustees refuse consent based on the breed of dog, e.g. a pit bull?

Member’s question:

Hi Graham,

We have a scheme that had a no pets Conduct Rule prior to 2016 and we are aware that this would have now been replaced by the Prescribed Pets Conduct Rule which requires Trustee permission which cannot be unreasonably withheld.

We have 2 ground floor units with gardens. The one owner has a small baby and the other new owners with a garden has an old pitbull dog and a new pitbull puppy for which they are asking permission to keep. For two weeks of every month the owners housesit at a family members house and the dogs accompany them. The owner with the baby is concerned about the breed of dog and the Trustees now have to act reasonably in granting permission. They are unsure of what to do as pitbulls have a bad reputation.

Can they deny permission based on breed and if so, would the pet owner have recourse via CSOS? They realise that can set condition when granting permission but at the same time are nervous to give permission to keep pets with a bad reputation in case something awful happens further down the line.

Graham’s answer:

Dear member,

Trustees cannot foresee the future. Their obligation is to consider all sides to the conflict and make a decision that they think is in the best interests of all owners and the body corporate.

On the brief facts you give, my view is that the trustees should take into account the view that pit bull dogs have a bad reputation for causing harm to other dogs and to children. They should not base a rejection only on the circumstances of the neighbour with the child, although that is a relevant circumstance at the moment. If the trustees feel that this extra dog being applied for is likely to be a danger to any owner, they can and should decide to refuse consent.

At the same time, they may want to consider suggesting to owners that they make a rule that sets out the community’s views on the issue, perhaps one that restrains future trustees from giving approval for certain types of dogs, e.g. pit bulls, dobermans, alsatians and any other types of dogs that they, the owners, believe could endanger scheme occupiers and/or get the body corporate involved in expensive litigation.

Kind regards
Graham

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Article reference: Paddocks Press: Volume 17, Issue 10.

Graham Paddock is available to answer questions on the Paddocks Club discussion forum for Community members. Get all your questions answered by joining Paddocks Club.

This article is published under the Creative Commons Attribution license.

Back to Paddocks Press – October 2022 Edition.