The law not determining the rules applicable to the conservation of the register of co-ownership, it is therefore necessary to refer to the rules that may be prescribed in the declaration of co-ownership; on this subject, see Richard LeCouffe's chronicle entitled Time limits for keeping documents in the register. Furthermore, specialized companies offer their services for the archiving of co-ownership (condominium) documents by digitizing all papers; this dematerialization opens up the possibility of sending certain documents digitally.
Terms and conditions of consultation of the register
Introduced by Bill 16, section 1070.1 of the Civil Code of Québec has come to define the terms and conditions of access of the register; the documents must be consulted in the presence of a director or a person designated for that purpose by the board of directors. Also, the consultations must be made at reasonable times and in accordance with the terms and conditions stated in the by-laws of the immovable.
That being said, any syndicate of co-owners could impose access guidelines to the register based on its own reality; he may require an appointment being made with one of the directors and also require the payment of reasonable fees for consultation purposes. However, tariffs and conditions of access should not unduly restrict the right of a co-owner to access the register. Finally, after paying a reasonable fee, any co-owner has the right to obtain a copy of the content of the register and of its documents.
Limits to the consultation
The syndicate is not obliged to grant unlimited access to the co-owners regarding the data contained in the register of co-ownership; only the information specified in section 1070 of the Civil Code of Québec must be made available to the co-owners. In a judgment rendered by the Superior Court, the judge decided that the co-owners could not have "unencumbered and total access to the syndicate’s accounting books; these are the working documents or management tools of the board of directors." In addition, in another judgment rendered by the Superior Court, it was stated as follows: "it is very unlikely that the legislature intended that in a divided co-ownership each co-owner thus had the absolute right to search as he wished in all accounting, tax and other documents some of which necessarily contain personal or otherwise confidential information." In brief, if the register of co-ownership contains personal information about a co-owner, a lessee (tenant) or an other occupant of the immovable, this information could not be transmitted to the co-owner who requested them.
Register in French
Introduced by Bill 16, section 1070.1.1 C.c.Q. now stipulates that the documents making up the register as well as those sent to co-owners must be drafted in French.
WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW! Excluding the email addresses and the phone numbers, the register containing the names and mailing addresses of the co-owners must be accessible to them. However, if email convocation to the co-owners' meeting is provided for in the declaration of co-ownership and a co-owner legally initiates a meeting, they will then have access, for this sole purpose, to these addresses.
WHAT TO KEEP IN MIND: The board of directors can set up an Extranet for co-ownerships; this consists of a dematerialized provision in a secure site of the documents held in the register of the co-ownership.
WARNING! The register of co-ownership may contain personal information concerning a co-owner, a lessee (tenant) or an other occupant of the immovable. The Civil Code of Québec and the Act respecting the protection of personal information in the private sector govern the processing of information collected by the syndicate on any person and so, regarding co-owners or third party members; he can't communicate this information or misuse it if he has not obtained the consent of the concerned person or if he is not legally authorized to do so.
Back to the factsheet: Register and archives of the co-ownership
