About Us

Turnbull Bowles Lawyers is a specialist Sydney CBD legal practice providing practical and comprehensive legal

services to the Strata Industry and Building and Construction Sectors.

We are committed to providing our clients with excellence in legal services. Since our inception, we have established a

proven track record of successfully representing a wide range of Owners Corporations, Strata Managing Agents,

Community Associations, Builders, Developers, Sub-Contractors, and Individual Lot and Property Owners.

We are a division of Forbes Dowling Lawyers, a national legal practice that specialises in Commercial Litigation,

Insolvency, Debt Recovery and General Legal Services. Forbes Dowling Lawyers have branches in Sydney, Brisbane,

the Gold Coast, Melbourne, Adelaide and Affiliates throughout Australasia.

Strata Title News

Strata Window Safety Locks and Devices

Amendments have been introduced into the Strata Schemes Management Act 1996 and Strata Schemes Management Regulation 2010 with regard to the installation of a screen lock or window safety device.

The changes were implemented as a result of fatalities in apartment buildings. Statistics have shown that each year approximately 50 children fall from windows or balconies in Australia. The changes have been implemented to ensure that children aged between 1 and 5 years are not exposed to the risk of falling from a window or balcony. The child window safety requirements for owners corporations took effect on 11 December 2013.

The NSW Government developed a range of measures to help prevent the incidence of falls. These measures included:

1. A requirement for Strata schemes with residential lots to install safety devices on all windows that present a risk to young children;

2. Allowing individual strata owners to install window safety devices regardless of their schemes by-laws;

3. Changes to the Residential Tenancies Regulation 2010 to include window safety devices in the prescribed condition report for rental premises. The change to the condition report took effect from 1 March 2014.

With regard to the windows, all windows above the ground level that are accessible to children from inside the building must have a safety device fitter. A window requires the installation of a safety device if:

The lowest part of the window is less than 1.7 m above the floor; and

The internal floor under the window is 2m or more above the outside surface.

The safety device must be able to limit the maximum window opening to 12.5 cm, must be robust and must be childproof.

The legislation and regulations require compliance with the window safety requirements to be met by 13 March 2018.

It is imperative Owners Corporations comply with the requirements and take steps to comply by 13 March 2018. In the event an Owners Corporation does not comply with the new requirements, they will face the risk of being fined.

Strata Title News continued……..

Relevantly Regulation 31 of the Strata Schemes Management Regulation 2010 now makes provision for the installation of a screen lock or window safety device. Regulation 31 relevantly provides:

(1) A building in a strata scheme is a building to which section 64A of the Act applies if the building contains lots used for residential purposes.

(2) A window within any such building is a window to which section 64A of the Act applies if:

(a) it is a window within the meaning of the Building Code of Australia; and

(b) it can be opened; and

(c) the lowest level of the window opening is less than 1.7m above the surface of any internal floor that abuts the wall of which it forms part; and

(d) that internal floor is 2m or more above the surface of any external surface below the window that abuts the wall; and

(e) it is a window on common property to which access can be gained from a residence in a strata scheme or a window on any part of the building that is part of a residence.

(3) A screen, lock or any other device is a complying window safety device for the purposes of section 64A of the Act if it: (a) is capable of restricting the opening of a window so that a sphere having a diameter of 125mm or more cannot

pass through the window opening; and

(b) is capable of resisting an outward horizontal action of 250 newtons; and

(c) has a child resistant release mechanism, in the case of a device that can be removed, overridden or unlocked.

Additionally, Section 64A of the Strata Schemes Management Act 1996 which provides:

(1) An owners corporation of a strata scheme to which this section applies must ensure that there are complying window safety devices for all windows of each building in the strata scheme that are windows to which this section applies.

(2) An owners corporation is to carry out work related to its functions under this section at its own expense and may, for the purposes of this section, carry out work on any part of the parcel.

(3) An owner of a lot in a strata scheme to which this section applies may install a complying window safety device on a window to which this section applies (other than a window on another owner’s lot).

(4) An owner of a lot who installs a window safety device under this section must:

(a) repair any damage caused to any part of the common property by the installation of the device; and

(b) ensure that the device is installed in a competent and proper manner and has an appearance, after it has been

installed, in keeping with the appearance of the building.

(5) An owners corporation or an owner of a lot may carry out work authorised by this section despite any other provision of this Act, the regulations or any by-law of the scheme.

(6) The regulations may make provision for or with respect to the following:

(a) the strata schemes and windows to which this section applies;

(b) the devices or other things that are complying window safety devices for the purposes of this section;

(c) notification to the owners corporation by owners who install window safety devices.

(7) A regulation may apply this section to a window located on any part of a parcel.

If you have any questions regarding this article, please contact Ms Pierrette Khoury of our office on (02) 8272 1999 or (02) 8272 1984. Email pierrette@turnbullbowles.com.au www.turnbullbowles.com.au

Building & Construction Services

Our Lawyers can assist clients with the following:

Construction Contracts

Negotiating and drafting commercial and residential construction, project management, subcontracts, engineering and other construction related agreements;

Advice and Appeals pursuant to the Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Act 1999;

Dispute resolution for issues arising during the course of construction projects.

Construction Disputes

Advising and acting for Owners Corporations, home owners, builders, developers and other parties regarding building defects claims;

Advising on proportionate liability issues;

Claims in negligence or for breach of contract against building professionals including Engineers, Architects, Principal Certifying Authorities and Construction and Design Contractors in residential building matters;

Recommending, managing and instructing experts to assess and report on building defects.

Strata & Community Title Law Services

We offer fixed fess for many services including drafting and registration of standard By-Laws with a 48 hour turnaround.

Our Lawyers can assist clients with the following:

Advice and representation in strata disputes and processes;

Drafting and registration of By-Laws;

Notices to Comply and Penalty Applications regarding breaches of By-Laws;

Advice and assistance regarding the interpretation, application and amendment of Strata Management Statements and Community Management Statements;

Attendance at Annual General Meetings, Extraordinary General Meetings and Executive Committee Meetings to provide advice, guidance and assistance;

Strata Subdivisions;

Easements;

Recovery action for unpaid strata levies;

General advice on Strata & Community title issues and Company Title issues;

Conversion from Company Title to Strata Title;

Building litigation;

Home Owner Warranty Insurance claims

General Services

Turnbull Bowles Lawyers is a division of Forbes Dowling Lawyers Pty Ltd and a subsidiary of a major Australian

Collections Firm, Australian Receivables Limited. Our clients enjoy the benefits of the much larger parent company’s

operating platform which includes sound governance, robust operating systems, high levels of compliance,

documented risk management procedures, superior security and quality management systems.

All these features combined provide clients with greater peace of mind and more compelling results. The group

provides a highly personalised, client specific and responsive service from talented, caring and successful practitioners

working with state of the art business systems and specialist knowledge in the areas of:

Commercial Litigation;

Business, Corporate & Commercial Law;

Property & Conveyancing;

Debt Recovery (with experts in the area of Strata and Local Government Rates Recovery);

Insolvency and Corporate Restructuring;

Building & Construction Law.

With branches and affiliates throughout Australasia, Turnbull Bowles Lawyers provides clients with a commercial and

pragmatic solution to any legal issue.