Question:
I live in a six unit complex where all the owners are trustees. We recently decided to repaint the buildings, but we cannot come to an agreement on which colour to use for the gutters and garage doors.

Let’s say, for example, that three trustees decide on green and the other three decide on blue. How do we resolve this issue? I have suggested that seeing as we cannot agree the current color must be used again.

Answer:
The situation you describe is a deadlock in the voting of the trustees.

In terms of prescribed management rule 18 the chairperson has a casting vote when there is a deadlock in the voting of trustees. So in this situation once every trustee has voted, including the chairperson, and there are three votes for painting the gutters and garage doors green and three votes for painting the gutters and garage doors blue — the chairperson is able to vote again thereby breaking the deadlock.

However, the chairperson has a duty to remain neutral and therefore his/her casting vote should not be used to change the existing situation.

The fact that the trustees, including the chairperson, are equally divided on this issue indicates that there is, without the casting vote, not enough support for the proposition that the existing situation should be changed. Therefore the chairperson’s casting vote should be used to maintain the existing position. This is in line with your suggestion that the current paint colour should be used again.

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