
The Court of Appeal has unanimously allowed an appeal by the Sentral Residences management corporation (SRMC) against four former committee members who collected meeting attendance allowances without prior approval.
A three-member bench led by Justice Lim Chong Fong held that the High Court erred in affirming the validity of the payments to the four individuals.
The bench ruled that the High Court was wrong to conclude that there was no provision in the Strata Management Act (SMA) that requires the Commissioner of Buildings (CoB) to approve the payment rates.
“The monies in the maintenance account are trust money, and the committee members act in the capacity of trustees,” Lim said.
He said Section 60 of the SMA — which governs the SRMC’s maintenance account —…