Office of the Commissioner

The Office of the Commissioner for Body Corporate and Community Management has two important functions, an information service and a dispute resolution service.

Information Service Phone 1800 060 119.

The Information Service can give you general information and direct you to relevant provisions of the Act. Its role under the Act does not extend to interpreting legislation or providing legal advice. Information about your rights and obligations can be obtained by phone during business hours 1800 060 119 (Don’t be surprised if you are answered by a machine. It is a very busy service. They will phone you back) or in writing (GPO Box 1049, Brisbane Q 4001) or by email bccm@justice.qld.gov.au

Dispute Resolution Service.

Disputes in complexes can range from disputes relating to the administration of a body corporate (eg meeting procedure or property maintenance issues) to disputes about breaches of by-laws such as parking infringements on common property.

The Commissioner’s Office provides a low cost service for resolving disputes which are within the guidelines set down in the Act.

Disputes that can be dealt with by the Commissioner’s Office include disputes between

• The owner or occupier of a lot and the owner or occupier of another lot in the scheme; or
• The owner or occupier of a lot and the body corporate for the scheme; or
• The body corporate and the body corporate manager for the scheme; or
• The committee and a committee member

Self Resolution

The dispute resolution process starts when a lot owner attempts to resolve a dispute and keeps evidence of this attempt at self resolution. Examples include keeping a copy of the letter to the other party or a copy of a motion with solutions to resolve the matter for a body corporate resolution of the meeting or a diary note of a telephone conversation aimed at resolving the matter may be such evidence

Evidence that you have made a reasonable attempt to resolve the dispute yourself is generally required when making an application to the Commissioners Office for the resolution of a dispute. For most disputes an Application for a Conciliation is the next step after attempts at self resolution have failed.