Alberta tries a new tack for resolving condo disputes
By Annalise Klingbeil
Calgary Herald
A newly created tribunal system will help condominium owners in Alberta who are embroiled in disputes avoid costly and time-consuming legal battles, the Minister of Service Alberta announced on Monday.
Manmeet Bhullar said the new dispute resolution process, expected to be operational by early 2014, will help protect the hundreds of thousands of condominium owners who live in Alberta.
“Everyday, hard-working Albertans who live in a condominium can’t afford $200 or $300 or $500 an hour to pay a lawyer,” Bhullar said Monday, standing near the Bow River, across from several condominium towers.
Bhullar said it’s common for condo owners to disagree with other condo owners and condo boards on issues ranging from parking spots to fees. “Owners can have disputes with one another over things like noise complaints and even odours coming from another unit,” he said.
Bhullar said the new system will allow condo owners to pay a “reasonable fee” to have their matter heard before an adjudicator.
Stephen Cassady, the president of the Canadian Condominium Institute — South Alberta Chapter, welcomed the government’s announcement of a new resolution model.
“It’s an entire waste of resources and time of people who could be better spending it doing something else,” he said of the current system.
Cassady said the industry has changed significantly in the 13 years since the government last updated its condominium legislation in 2000.
“If we can get (disputes) out of the court systems then we will do a phenomenal job of improving everybody’s life,” he said.
The new changes are the first of many to come to the province’s Condominium Property Act, following public consultation with Albertans, Bhullar said.
Instead of waiting for changes to the Act to be tabled in the Legislature in the spring, Bhullar said he is tasking a committee of people, led by Sherwood Park MLA Cathy Olesen, to develop the new dispute resolution model immediately. “Developing a more affordable and speedy way to resolve differences will help protect condominium owners,” Bhullar said.
Bhullar said condominiums accounted for nearly 20 per cent of home sales in Alberta in 2012.
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1 comment:
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