We advise owners corporations, committee members, lot owners and managers on disputes arising from levies, rules, common property, building management and mixed-use operating tensions.

Owners corporation disputes rarely stay contained. A levy dispute can expose a defective rule, a rule dispute can expose a governance failure, and a maintenance disagreement can spill into insurance, building defect or cladding issues. In mixed-use buildings, these disputes are often sharpened by competing requirements between residential, retail and commercial lots. We bring a commercial lens to disputes that are procedurally technical but often driven by relationships, cost pressure and building performance. We assist with:

1. Levy and fee recovery disputes, including non-payment, special levies and disputed cost allocation, with fixed-fee options available for routine debt recovery;
2. Rule interpretation, drafting and enforcement, including breach notices and compliance strategy;
3. Committee and governance disputes, including disputed resolutions, proxies and decision-making authority;
4. Common property and boundary disputes, including access, works approvals, alterations, exclusive use and disputes over how the plan of subdivision applies to a lot;
5. Building defect and cladding disputes, including responding to council show-cause and rectification notices, pursuing builders and developers for rectification, and negotiating settlement deeds;
6. Insurance and recovery matters connected to building damage, defects or cladding remediation;
7. Noise, nuisance and use disputes between lot owners, and between residential and commercial occupiers in mixed-use schemes;
8. Manager disputes, including disputes over management contracts, fees and conduct; and
9. Applications and proceedings at VCAT and, where matters escalate, the Supreme Court of Victoria.

Getting the process right from the outset matters as much as the merits of the dispute. We triage disputes early to separate matters of principle from day-to-day friction, develop a strategy to preserve evidence and maintain procedural compliance, and draft correspondence and settlement terms that are enforceable and workable in practice. Our aim is to resolve disputes efficiently, with minimal disruption to building operations and lot owners.