Condo Board and Strata Council Meeting Minutes - What you need to include
Hand writing condo meeting minutesMinutes created during a Condo or Strata Meeting are one of the most important documents for condominium associations as these condo board minutes are an official record of actions taken at a meeting. Well written notes can be very valuable in case of any disputes later on, because they are the best available proof of what proposal was adopted by the board in its meeting.
Many associations fail to keep well written and useful minutes and by the time these issues are highlighted – it is usually too late to get the problem corrected.
When it comes to writing at these board meetings, here are a few guidelines that will help you in jotting down the correct information during a board meeting.
Minutes should clearly describe a meeting and the following points should be noted down in a clear, concise manner:
The Content of Minutes
Name of the Condo Corporation or Association
The legal name of the association should be included at the top of the minutes.
Details of the Meeting
Complete details of the meeting should be noted down, including:
- Date of the meeting
- Type of meeting
- Time of meeting
- Location of meeting
The Attendees
- List the Board members who are present or absent
- Identify the management representatives who are present
- Identify any guest speakers present
- Indicate that a quorum of the board is present
The minutes should also note down the time of board members if they arrive late or leave early.
Quorum
A certain number of Board of Directors must be present so be able to officially hold a meeting. Make sure a quorum is present.
Board Actions
Whatever actions the board takes must be noted down for future reference. Incorrectly noting down the actions or missing out important information can create problems in resolving any disputes that may arise later on. These minutes provide the only way to solve any problems later on.
The Format of the Minutes
The format of the minutes is extremely important. It should be clear and concise as well as having an organized look to it.
Properly and accurately written board meeting notes are essential. It is recommended that an individual from the Board of Directors, who is responsible and reliable, should uphold the position of the Secretary during their term.
In order to maintain uniformity in successive board meeting minutes, a standardized template should be adopted so that it does not complicate things when a different secretary is appointed. This will also ensure consistency and avoid any confusion.
Approval
After the minutes are approved by the board of directors, all previous notes in the form of audio/video or even in written forms which were used to create the final copy should be destroyed. It is not always a good idea to keep such detailed notes as it would cause headaches for the association if they ever become involved in litigation or insurance claims.
Creating condo board minutes is not at all complicated if the above guidelines are followed, in fact, it becomes a much easier and interesting task.
Here is a link to a sample template condo board / strata council meeting minutes.
