A practical guide to drafting effective by-laws

With more than 91,000 strata schemes and more than one million strata lots in NSW, by-laws are not just legal instruments. They are everyday rules that must be clear enough for owners, tenants, strata managers and residents to understand and follow.

In a UNSW Edge session on drafting effective by-laws, Allison Benson of Benson Legal said the strongest by-laws begin with purpose: identifying the behaviour, right or use being authorised or regulated, then checking that the proposed rule sits within the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 (NSW), the Strata Schemes Development Act 2015 (NSW) and relevant case law. The session emphasised that by-laws must be made for the management, administration, control, use or enjoyment of lots and common property, and must not be harsh, unconscionable or oppressive.

That legal discipline also has a practical dimension. Benson noted that many strata residents rent, many do not speak English as a first language at home, and many may never have carefully read the by-laws that bind them. Her advice was to avoid overregulation, use plain English, define terms only where needed, read the current registered by-laws before drafting, and be cautious about provisions such as blanket pet bans, short-term letting restrictions, bonds, cost recovery clauses and exclusive use rights. As cases including Cooper v The Owners - Strata Plan No 58068 [2020] NSWCA 250 and Nicholson v The Owners - Strata Plan No 104042 [2025] NSWCATCD 202 show, a by-law that overreaches can fail even when it appears administratively convenient.

If this topic interests you, you can learn more and receive a CPD point in Substantive Law here