Definition : Surveillance cameras

We have a co-owner who has installed in his apartment a surveillance camera that can capture images of sidewalks located in common portions. This camera, located in his bedroom, can film passers-by through the window.  We have been informed that this co-owner plans to install more cameras to monitor the parking lot and surrounding areas this time. These are not cameras that board members have access to.  We have received questions and complaints about the legality of these cameras.  Question: Can you  tell us if this practice is legal in Quebec?

Harassment in co-ownership can take many forms and develop in a wide variety of contexts. When occupants of a building with very different temperaments share a place to live, it happens that the spirits heat up to the point of making cohabitation impossible. A co-owner who infringes on his neighbor's privacy and interferes in his privacy can be particularly irritating and even embarrassing. If he comes to photograph him when he walks through the common portions, monitors all his comings and goings or installs a surveillance camera in the corridor pointing towards his front door, then there is an illegitimate invasion of his privacy. Such serious conduct can be considered psychological harassment, in that it seriously harms the person who is the victim.

December 10, 2019 — A news item posted on Condolegal.com last June summarized a judgment rendered by the Ontario Superior Court. This decision concerned the installation of surveillance cameras in the common portions of 11 condominiums. Several of the buildings in question housed cameras hidden in the ceilings of the corridors. Police officers had access to these corridors, in particular, as well as to underground parking lots, because of permission granted by the syndicates of co-owners concerned. The objective: to investigate 14 people suspected of being associated with organized crime groups. The Ontario Superior Court had ruled that a condominium corporation had "full authority" to determine security issues in the common areas of its building, and that if necessary, it could have surveillance cameras installed.

The desire to preserve the safety of people and property can lead both syndicates and co-owners to consider installing surveillance cameras in the building. For many, when a co-ownership faces repeated acts of vandalism or burglary, video surveillance appears to be the only solution, especially since the decrease in the cost of installations and technical progress facilitate its access. However, the question of the legality of such facilities raises several debates in co-ownership. It should be noted that surveillance cameras are used in many buildings, although they do not please everyone, including the occupants of the building who claim the right to privacy. However, are surveillance cameras in a co-ownership legal? And if so, is there a procedure to follow?

5 juin 2019 — Les caméras de surveillance sont utilisées dans plusieurs copropriétés, bien qu’elles ne fassent pas l’affaire de tout le monde, notamment des copropriétaires suspectés de s’adonner à des activités criminelles. Une question se pose dès lors : la police devrait-elle avoir le droit d’installer des caméras vidéo dans les parties communes d’une copropriété, afin d’obtenir des preuves à propos d’occupants soupçonnés d’être des hors-la-loi?