Prim Court Body Corporate v S.P. Dhlamini

The applicant, Prim Court Body Corporate, brought an application under section 38 of the Community Schemes Ombud Service Act 9 of 2011 for relief under section 39(1)(e) relating to financial issues. The respondent, S.P. Dhlamini, is the registered owner of Unit 8, Prim Court, 164 Rietfontein Road, Germiston, Gauteng, and therefore a member of the body corporate. The body corporate alleged that the respondent had failed to pay levies, causing arrears to accumulate and placing financial strain on the scheme. As at 2 November 2023, the body corporate claimed arrear levies of R22,020.37. It also alleged that numerous communications had been sent to the respondent demanding payment. The respondent did not file written submissions despite being requested to do so. A certificate of non-resolution was issued after conciliation failed, and the matter proceeded to adjudication on the papers.

• Whether the respondent, as owner of a unit in the sectional title scheme, was legally obliged to pay levy contributions to the body corporate.
• Whether the applicant had established, on a balance of probabilities, that the respondent was indebted in the amount of R22,020.37 for arrear levies.
• Whether section 39(1)(e) of the CSOS Act empowered the adjudicator to order payment of the arrear levies.
• Whether the applicant was entitled, in this adjudication, to recovery of legal fees, collection costs, and related disbursements without such costs being taxed or agreed.

The application succeeded. The adjudicator ordered that: (a) the relief sought under section 39(1)(e) of the CSOS Act is granted; (b) the respondent is indebted to the applicant in the amount of R22,020.37 for arrear levies; (c) the respondent must pay this amount in 8 equal monthly instalments of R2,752.54; (d) the first payment must be made within 30 days of delivery of the order; (e) the remaining 7 instalments must be paid on the first day of each succeeding month; (f) these instalments are additional to the respondent's ongoing monthly levy; (g) no penalties will accrue during the permitted instalment period; (h) if the respondent defaults on any instalment, the full outstanding balance becomes immediately due and payable and penalties become applicable from the date of breach; and (i) no order as to costs was made.

An owner of a unit in a sectional title scheme is by law a member of the body corporate and is obliged to pay levy contributions duly raised in terms of the Sectional Titles Schemes Management Act and the scheme's governance framework. Under section 39(1)(e) of the CSOS Act, an adjudicator may order payment of arrear levies where the body corporate proves the indebtedness on a balance of probabilities. By contrast, legal fees and collection costs related to levy recovery are recoverable only once taxed or agreed, and should not be summarily awarded without such determination.

The adjudicator observed that the body corporate relies on members' contributions to perform its statutory functions and that non-payment causes financial strain on the scheme. The adjudicator also remarked on the general legal principle that legal costs must be taxed or agreed and that any departure from this principle would be inappropriate. The references to the right of appeal under section 57 of the CSOS Act were informational and not part of the binding reasoning on the merits.

The decision confirms within the CSOS framework that a sectional title owner is obliged to pay levies as a consequence of membership of the body corporate, and that arrear levies may be recovered through a CSOS adjudication under section 39(1)(e). It also illustrates the interaction between the CSOS Act and the Sectional Titles Schemes Management Act in levy disputes. Importantly, it reiterates that legal fees and debt-collection costs are not automatically recoverable in a CSOS order unless they have been taxed or agreed, reinforcing procedural safeguards concerning costs in community scheme disputes.