The Trustees of Berton Square Body Corporate v T Daniel

The applicant, the Trustees of Berton Square Body Corporate, is the body corporate of a sectional title scheme. The respondent, T Daniel, is the registered owner of section 10 (TDA001-S10) at 29 Sharon Road, Berton Park, Boksburg, Gauteng. The body corporate alleged that the respondent fell into arrears with levy contributions and ancillary charges from March 2023 and, despite written demands, failed or neglected to pay the amounts due. The applicant lodged a dispute with the Community Schemes Ombud Service (CSOS) under s 38 of the Community Schemes Ombud Service Act 9 of 2011, seeking relief under s 39(1)(e) for payment of arrear contributions and related amounts. Conciliation failed, a certificate of non-resolution was issued, and the matter proceeded to paper-based adjudication. The respondent filed no submissions. The applicant submitted a levy statement and supporting resolution for the charges, claiming R64 379.19 in arrear levies and ancillary charges, including monthly CSOS levies.

• Whether the respondent, as unit owner, was indebted to the body corporate for unpaid levies and ancillary charges.
• Whether the applicant proved the indebtedness on a balance of probabilities in the absence of any answering submissions by the respondent.
• Whether relief under s 39(1)(e) of the CSOS Act should be granted for payment of the arrear contributions.
• Whether interest and costs should be awarded, and on what terms payment should be made.

The application was granted. The respondent was declared indebted to the applicant in the amount of R64 379.19 for levies and ancillary charges in respect of section S10 as at 11 March 2024. The respondent was ordered to pay that amount in 18 equal monthly instalments of R3 576.62 commencing on 1 April 2024, with the remaining instalments payable on the first day of each succeeding month. The order did not affect the respondent's obligation to continue paying regular monthly levies and ancillary charges. No interest would accrue during the 18-month payment period, but on default the full outstanding amount would become immediately due and payable. There was no order as to costs.

A body corporate is entitled to recover levies and ancillary charges from a unit owner where it proves, on a balance of probabilities, that the charges were lawfully raised and remain unpaid. Under the STSMA and prescribed management rules, owners are obliged to contribute to the body corporate's funds, and lawful levy claims become due in accordance with trustee resolutions. In CSOS proceedings under s 39(1)(e), uncontested documentary proof of the indebtedness is sufficient to justify an order for payment.

The adjudicator observed that defaulting owners are effectively subsidised by compliant owners and that a body corporate cannot perform its statutory functions without contributions from unit owners. These remarks explain the policy rationale for enforcing levy obligations but were not independently necessary to the dispositive finding. The adjudicator also noted the general evidential principles of relevance, credibility and probabilities in broad terms, which were ancillary to the ultimate decision on the uncontested debt.

The matter is significant in the community schemes context because it illustrates the CSOS adjudication process for recovery of unpaid body corporate levies under s 39(1)(e) of the CSOS Act. It confirms that a body corporate may obtain enforceable relief on paper where it provides a levy statement and supporting authority for the charges, particularly where the owner does not dispute the claim. The order also demonstrates the adjudicator's remedial flexibility in structuring repayment by instalments while preserving the body corporate's right to recover ongoing levies and to accelerate the debt upon default.