Strata Committee Meeting Minutes Template: What Must Be Recorded (NSW, Vic, Qld)

The short answer

• NSW: keep "full and accurate minutes". Within 7 days of the meeting, give a copy to each committee member and each owner. In schemes with more than 100 lots, owners get a copy only if they ask within those 7 days (Schedule 2, cl 17).
• Victoria: the secretary keeps minutes. They must record the date, time and place, members present, members voting, every resolution and the voting on it (s 114). There's no deadline to send them to owners, but owners can inspect them.
• Queensland: minutes go to committee members and owners within 21 days (Standard Module s 71). They must record the words of each motion and the votes for and against, plus people present, proxies, documents tabled and the secretary's contact details.
• None of the three states requires the chair to sign the minutes.

The rules side by side

What to record

A set of minutes that covers the strictest requirements in all three states records:

1. Scheme name, plan number and meeting type.
2. Date, time and place, or how members joined online.
3. Who was present and in what capacity: committee members, owners attending, the strata manager. Note apologies.
4. Proxies tabled (Queensland).
5. Quorum. Confirm one was present.
6. Conflicts of interest declared, and whether the member left the room or abstained. In NSW, also record the disclosure in the committee's disclosure book (cl 18(3)).
7. Confirmation of the previous minutes (required in Queensland, good practice elsewhere).
8. Each motion in its exact words, with the result and the votes for and against. In Victoria, record the names of members voting (s 114(3)).
9. Motions owners submitted: when they were submitted and by whom, and what happened (Queensland s 71(6)).
10. Documents tabled: correspondence, reports, notices, quotes. In Queensland, quotes are kept with the minutes (s 174).
11. Decisions made since the last meeting outside a meeting.
12. Next meeting date, if set, and closing time.
13. The secretary's name and contact address (Queensland).

Minutes template

Delete the lines that don't apply in your state. Keeping them does no harm.

Checklist before you send the minutes

• Every motion is written out in full, not summarised
• Each motion shows the result and the votes for and against
• In Victoria, the names of members voting are recorded
• Conflicts of interest are recorded, with what the member did
• Attendance, apologies and quorum are recorded
• Quotes and reports are attached or listed
• Decisions made outside a meeting are included
• Action items have a person and a date
• The secretary's name and contact address are at the end
• They go to committee members and owners within 7 days (NSW) or 21 days (Queensland)
• They're filed with the building's records for at least 7 years (NSW and Victoria) or permanently (Queensland, s 231)

Decisions made outside a meeting

• NSW: a motion is taken to be passed without the meeting being held if notice of the meeting was given, a copy of the motion went to each member, and a majority approved it in writing. It fails if owners holding more than a third of the unit entitlement gave notice opposing it (Schedule 2, cl 9). The 7-day rule for sending minutes applies to these resolutions too.
• Victoria: by ballot, with notice to each member and a closing date. The resolution passes only with a majority of all committee members (s 111).
• Queensland: by written vote within 21 days. A majority of all voting members must agree, and the result goes in the record of motions and is confirmed at the next meeting (ss 68–70).

General meeting and AGM minutes

The rules for general meetings are a little different:

• NSW: "full and accurate minutes", including all motions passed. Send them to owners within 14 days (Schedule 1, cl 22). The next general meeting confirms them.
• Victoria: minutes must record the date, time and place, owners present, owners who gave proxies, proxies present, the voting and the text of all resolutions (s 81). The previous AGM's minutes go out with the next AGM notice.
• Queensland: as for committee meetings, plus abstentions, the votes for each candidate in a committee election, and the reasons for any ruling that a motion was out of order. Send them within 21 days (s 117).

Common questions

Does the chair have to sign the minutes?

Not under the legislation in any of the three states. Many committees still do, as a record that the minutes were confirmed.

Do we have to record how each member voted?

In Victoria, the minutes must record the names of the members voting and the voting on each resolution (s 114). In Queensland, the votes for and against must be recorded, not names. NSW only requires "full and accurate minutes". Recording names when a vote is split avoids arguments later.

Can owners attend committee meetings?

In NSW, owners can attend but can only speak if the committee agrees (Schedule 2, cl 13). Record their attendance either way.

Where UnitBuddy fits

In UnitBuddy, motions, votes and minutes stay together on the building's record. The next committee can see what was decided, when and by how many votes, without searching old PDFs.

Further reading

Keep the scheme file in one place the committee and the manager can both open. Features, pricing, or book a tour.