Definition : Legal person

The syndicate of co-owners, as a legal person, has a juridical personality. It acts through two decision-making bodies, the meeting of the co-owners  and the board of directors. The directors are natural persons who make up the board of directors of the syndicate of co-owners, of which they are also the mandataries. In principle, it is the board of directors as a group that makes the decisions and not the directors individually. The latter are appointed or elected to contribute to the accomplishment of the mission of the syndicate and the good management of its property. They must make use of their know-how, skills and experience to accomplish this mission, making sure they respect the Law and the declaration of co-ownership. Their contribution must be performed with honesty, loyalty, care, diligence, efficiency, assiduity and fairness. A review of the different aspects of the director’s role:  

During a meeting of co-owners, important decisions are made for each member of the co-ownership. Whether for alteration or improvement of the common portions, the election of the members of the board of directors, it is up to the co-owners to decide. However, if a co-owner is absent and has not taken care to be represented at the meeting, his vote may be sorely lacking. This may  also  prevent  the obtaining of a quorum and consequently the holding of the meeting of co-owners. When a co-owner cannot go there, he can ask the person of his choice to represent him. The mandatary the one who receives the proxy is not necessarily another co-owner. It may be a person outside the co-ownership. The latter will thus be able to represent him in this meeting and vote in his place on all the questions on the agenda. A written instrument is compulsory Tacit mandate being excluded, you must give a written instrument to the mandatary of your choice if you wish to be represented at the Meeting. The latter, who will represent you and vote on your behalf during the general meeting, can be one of the directors of the co-ownership (in his personal capacity), another co-owner, a friend or a person totally foreign to the co-ownership.

The syndicate acts as a legal person bringing together all the co-owners of the building and not each of them individually. The Civil Code of Quebec (C.c.Q.) provides that the syndicate of co-owners arises, by operation of law, at the time of publication of the declaration of co-ownership in the Land register. With the powers devolved to it by law and exercised by its two decision-making bodies, it thus expresses the autonomy of the community of co-owners. As a result, the co-owners are third parties to the syndicate. The assets of the syndicate are thus distinct from those of each co-owner. Despite the collective nature of this type of co-ownership, the legislator has not attributed to the syndicate the ownership of the common portions, which is distributed among the co-owners according to the relative value of their fraction.