Ontario Condo Law Blog : Toronto Condominium Lawyer & Attorney : Gardiner Miller Arnold Law Firm : Ontario, Ottawa, Hamilton, Kitchener

There were lots of newsy condo-related stories in the past month that we tweeted on our microblog.   Here are some of them:

ONCA: City was grossly negligent to wait 34 hrs before salting icy sidewalks; ordered to pay $280K in slip and fall - http://url4.eu/1FAAq

BC Strata Property Act amendments now in force - http://bit.ly/aKYYyy

Way to go, #Toronto! City goes to bat for neighbours of cement plant (via Saxe Envirolaw blog) - http://bit.ly/aBEE48

OEB: Toronto Hydro breached Electricity Act by refusing to connect service to the bulk meters at new condos - http://bit.ly/akzGYV

OEB issues compliance order against Toronto Hydro to ensure new condos have choice of smart meter suppliers - http://bit.ly/b145eU

Daily Commercial News: CCDC 2-1994 contract seals being recalled, will be replaced free of charge - http://bit.ly/btTnIP

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In a special update released this week, CCI-Toronto and ACMO announced that they have successfully lobbied the provincial government to amend the regulations under the Condo Act so that corporations registered before May 5, 2001 will have 15 years (not 10 years) from the date of their first reserve fund study to top-up their reserve funds.

[Update (March 7, 2010):  The regulation making this amendment is now published here.]

Condominium corporations existing as of May 1, 2001 were required to have their first official reserve fund study under the New Act within three years after that date. Generally speaking, that means that they must top up their reserve funds by the year 2016 or 2019.

CCI-Toronto and ACMO deserve kudos for securing this concession to help condo corporations offset the deleterious effects of the ever-looming HST.   We wish them well in their continued negotiations with government.

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The Toronto Chapter of the Canadian Condominium Institute has posted a special info bulletin on how condominium unit owners can claim the Home Renovation Tax Credit (HRTC).

From the bulletin:

On behalf of CCI Toronto & Area Members, and in conjunction with ACMO, a lawyer specializing in tax law was retained to coordinate a meeting with CRA representatives in order to address many questions submitted by our members regarding the legal interpretation of the HRTC rules and how they affect the practical management of Condominium Corporations. This meeting with CRA representatives was also attended by an Auditor specializing in condominium accounting and taxation.

16 questions and answers are then provided.

See the bulletin (in pdf) here.

Kudos to CCI-T and ACMO for gathering and presenting this useful information.  

Pass it on!

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In case you spent January at the gym or fulfilling other resolutions for the new decade, here is our mini-digest of noteworthy condo-related posts from the blogosphere last month.

Enjoy the Family Day long weekend!   

Records Retention: Going Paperless through E-Archives -- Paper is so passé! Marilyn Perez-Martinez of the Florida Condo & HOA Legal Blog describes some of the critical considerations in devising an electronic archive process for storing a condo’s records.  The key is in preparing a sound plan.

A Building Component does not become Common Area just because it was placed or built on the Common Area -- California HOA attorney David Swedelson blogs on a recent appellate case that sounds strikingly similar to our Court of Appeal’s ruling in Wentworth Condo Corp. 198 v. McMahon.   

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In a decision dated January 27, 2010, the Ontario Energy Board ruled that Toronto Hydro breached the Electricity Act by refusing to connect hydro service to the bulk meters of new condominium projects unless all units in the condominium are individually smart-metered by Toronto Hydro and become a customer of Toronto Hydro.

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People trying to keep tabs on the legislative authority for suite submetering can’t even blink these days without the risk of being left in the dark!  

On December 8, 2009, the Ontario Government tabled Bill 235, an Act to enact the Energy Consumer Protection Act, 2009 and to amend other Acts.

If passed, Bill 235 will, among other things, repeal section 53.17 of the Electricity Act, 1998, which is the current authority for condominium boards to install smart meters and download electricity costs to individual unit owners. An entirely new section dealing with submetering and billing in multi-unit residential buildings will be passed, as well as a whole raft of regulations.

As with all recent energy and environmental initiatives, Bill 235 is expected to move forward quickly. Comments were to have been received by February 6, 2010.   The public consultation page is here, with links to additional information. The actual wording of the Bill and its legislative status is found here.

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The Ontario Superior Court of Justice recently confirmed the simple notion that a condominium lien is not slander of title where the unit owner is in arrears of common expenses at the time the certificate of lien is registered on title.

The following portion of Madam Justice Low’s decision in Jeffers v. YCC 98, 2010 ONSC 474 (CanLII) is instructive:

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