All conduits, pipes, cables or others dedicated in particular to the conveyance of fluids (e.g. drinking water, rainwater or sewage), energy (e.g. electricity or gas) and data transmission (e.g. telephone communications, internet, etc.). In divided co-ownership, the piping and wiring is presumed to be a common portion. It is therefore the responsibility of the syndicate of co-owners to ensure its maintenance and preservation. However, the part of the piping and wiring, which is used only as a private portion, is not part of the common equipment and is therefore not governed by the presumption of article 1044 of the Civil Code of Quebec. This part would then be a private portion according to the definition given in 1042 of the Civil Code of Quebec.
The characteristic of divided co-ownership is to divide the building into various lots that will be the exclusive property of the co-owners (private portions), and for others that will be the property of all the co-owners (common portions). These lots are identified by an individual number, which was assigned during the cadastral operation. Each of the private lots of the co-ownership thus constituted becomes a unique property. The distinction between the common and private portions is essential, particularly from the point of view of maintenance, which is the responsibility of the syndicate of co-owners for the common portions and of the co-owners for the private portions.
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The Civil Code of Québec confers juridical personality on the community of co-owners. Article 1039 of the Civil Code of Quebec provides that as soon as the declaration of co-ownership is published, the community of co-owners constitutes a legal person called a syndicate of co-owners.
Those duties and obligations are mainly aimed to ensure the preservation of the immovable, the administration of the common portions and the protection of the rights affecting the immovable or co-ownership, as well as all operations in the common interest. However, it is essential to understand them well because failure to comply with these duties and obligations towards a co-owner or a third party could lead to the civil liability of a syndicate.
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