Owner Run Management Company

jd

I can understand where the existing directors have been nominated as proxies, but the managing agent controlling the proxies is a new one to me.

Data protection does not apply to the register of members of the company. Is it the agent saying it does to you?

Agustine

jd, she is saying that the Data Protection office informed her that she needs to have the permission of members (individual owners) to share their contact details with another member/owner. I think she will argue that the company act refers only to the members registered with the CRO. I think that Owner Management Companies (OMC's) only register a small amount of actual owners/members for the purposes of the CRO. The constitution states that number of members proposed to be registered will be nine, I think that this is for convenience and it may be the norm among OMC's to only register a token amount of the actual membership.

jd

Agustine wrote: »

jd, she is saying that the Data Protection office informed her that she needs to have the permission of members (individual owners) to share their contact details with another member/owner.

I presume "she" is the agent.

Anyway..

https://www.dataprotection.ie/docs/Management-Companies/1245.htm

9.2 Is a member of a management company entitled to be provided with a full list of all registered members of the management company?


Under Section 116 of the Companies Acts every company is required to keep a register of the company's members containing details of the names and addresses of each member (which would not necessarily be their usual residential address if that is different from the property address which they own within the particular development). Every company's register of members, including that of a management company, is a public document. It may be inspected free of charge by any member of the company, and by any other person on payment of a nominal fee (Section 119 Companies Acts).

Accordingly given that there is a specific legal basis for the provision of this data, there would be no issue from a data protection point of view with a management company making these registers available for inspection to members of the company or to the public in line with the specific provisions of the relevant legislation as outlined above.

Agustine

jd, thank you. Yes 'she' being the agent. The obstacle I think lies in the difference between (all) members (owners) and those limited number that are 'registered'. The nine registered members with the CRO will have known that the register is a public document and therefore have consented that their details will be shared. Over 80% of the owners will not have been registered with the CRO (see earlier note). It is is these 80% for which details are being withheld as they have not been asked to consent to their information being shared with other owner/members. Obviously the agent has a detailed list of 100% of the owner/members so may seek blank proxies. Blank proxies can be exercised validly by the nominee whatever way she/he likes. You don't have to be a member to be a nominee to exercise a proxy vote.

Lantus

Agustine wrote:

jd, thank you. Yes 'she' being the agent. The obstacle I think lies in the difference between (all) members (owners) and those limited number that are 'registered'. The nine registered members with the CRO will have known that the register is a public document and therefore have consented that their details will be shared. Over 80% of the owners will not have been registered with the CRO (see earlier note). It is is these 80% for which details are being withheld as they have not been asked to consent to their information being shared with other owner/members. Obviously the agent has a detailed list of 100% of the owner/members so may seek blank proxies. Blank proxies can be exercised validly by the nominee whatever way she/he likes. You don't have to be a member to be a nominee to exercise a proxy vote.

Red herring. The original members are purely a function of the minimum number of people needed to set up a limited company. They are not members in the normal sense and the members register does not apply to them. They don't own property or pay fees.

The document is public and can be obtained freely at any time. Start recording your requests and answers. If they refuse contact odce and report.

jd

And make a complaint to the the PSRA against the agent, as they are obstructing the proper operation of the OMC.

http://www.psr.ie/website/npsra/npsraweb.nsf/page/index-en

Agustine

Lantus l, The link to the to the ODCE Property Management Handbook reinforces your assertion (and also jd's). Chapter 11 focuses on the register outlining the need to make same available and also refers to prosecution for obstruction. This paragraph is game, set and match!

11.11] The ODCE has heard of instances in which members of management
companies have encountered difficulties when seeking to know who are the other
members of their company. We have been told of instances in which directors,
secretaries or agents have told members that such details are confidential and
cannot be disclosed. We think it important to emphasise that this is not so.140 As
outlined above the contents of a management company’s register of members is
information which is available as of right not only to other members of the company,
but to third parties also.

Thank you both so much for your time and advice, and also other contributors. Must go I have an urgent e-mail to send

Agustine

I can't believe that I'm back om here. Wrote requesting members register. Secretary again quoted Data Protection (I know) U had included the excerpt from ODCE. They ignored it. They referred me to arbitration (I know)
The chairman wrote saying he would refer my request to the Data Protection Commissioner.
I wrote to the ODCE, they seemed to misunderstand compliant and referred me to the Data Protection. I wrote back appealing and clarifying that it was a "failure to comply with companies act complaint". I tried to phone ODCE person left message, no response.
Looks like they will cotinue to resist and then concede by which time it will be too late for the AGM. I wrote to Data Protection anyway, awaiting response.