Introduction
Anyone who owns an apartment is by operation of law a member of the owners' association (VvE). The association manages the common parts and takes its decisions in the general meeting of owners. Disputes usually concern the validity of a resolution, maintenance and contributions, or the use of a private part. The deed of division (splitsingsakte) and the division regulations form the framework against which everything is tested.
The deed of division and its interpretation
The deed of division, with the regulations it contains, determines what is common, what is private and what is and is not permitted. Because the deed is registered in the public registers and binds later purchasers too, it is interpreted by objective standards: what is decisive is what follows from the deed itself and the accompanying drawings by objective standards, not what individual owners may have intended. Thus the Supreme Court recently had to interpret whether the deed of division required permission to let an apartment (Supreme Court 6 December 2024, ECLI:NL:HR:2024:1809).
Resolutions: void or voidable
A resolution of the association can be void or voidable. Void is a resolution contrary to the law or the deed of division (Article 2:14 DCC); voidable is a resolution contrary to reasonableness and fairness, to the regulations, or to the rules on how it came about, such as the convocation and the quorum (Article 5:130 DCC in conjunction with Article 2:15 DCC). Practical requirements apply to those convocation rules: the Supreme Court accepted that a convocation by email can be valid where the regulations do not exclude it and communication between the owner and the association always went by email (Supreme Court 10 November 2023, ECLI:NL:HR:2023:1535). Annulment must be sought from the subdistrict court within one month of becoming aware. That short period is fatal: a party who is too late is bound by the resolution.
Substitute authorisation
Where the meeting refuses permission for something that requires it, for instance a renovation of a private part or a change of use, the subdistrict court can grant a substitute authorisation on request (Article 5:121 DCC). The court reviews whether the refusal was given without reasonable ground or whether the applicant has a weighty interest. In this way a deadlock in the meeting can be broken.
Maintenance, contributions and the board
The association must maintain the common parts and keep a reserve fund for that purpose (Article 5:126 DCC). Disputes concern arrears of contributions, the question whether something belongs to the common or the private part, and the functioning of the board. Supervision of the board and the correct adoption of the annual accounts determine whether a contribution or a discharge holds up.
What decides the outcome
The outcome is rarely decided by a single rule, but by the deed of division, compliance with the formal rules on decision-making, and the fatal one-month period for annulment. A party challenging a resolution must act quickly and identify the defects in how it came about sharply. A party wishing a resolution to hold up ensures in advance that the convocation, the quorum and the majority are in order.