Definitions and interpretation

1  (1)  In this Act:

"approving officer" means an appropriate approving officer appointed under the Land Title Act;

"assessed value" means the value assessed under the Assessment Act;

"bare land strata plan" means

(a) a strata plan on which the boundaries of the strata lots are defined on a horizontal plane by reference to survey markers and not by reference to the floors, walls or ceilings of a building, or

(b) any other strata plan defined by regulation to be a bare land strata plan;

"bylaw" means a bylaw of a strata corporation;

"common asset" means

(a) personal property held by or on behalf of a strata corporation, and

(b) land held in the name of or on behalf of a strata corporation, that is

(i)  not shown on the strata plan, or

(ii)  shown as a strata lot on the strata plan;

"common expenses" means expenses

(a) relating to the common property and common assets of the strata corporation, or

(b) required to meet any other purpose or obligation of the strata corporation;

"common property" means

(a) that part of the land and buildings shown on a strata plan that is not part of a strata lot, and

(b) pipes, wires, cables, chutes, ducts and other facilities for the passage or provision of water, sewage, drainage, gas, oil, electricity, telephone, radio, television, garbage, heating and cooling systems, or other similar services, if they are located

(i)  within a floor, wall or ceiling that forms a boundary

(A)  between a strata lot and another strata lot,

(B)  between a strata lot and the common property, or

(C)  between a strata lot or common property and another parcel of land, or

(ii)  wholly or partially within a strata lot, if they are capable of being and intended to be used in connection with the enjoyment of another strata lot or the common property;

"contingency reserve fund" means a fund for common expenses that usually occur less often than once a year or that do not usually occur, as set out in section 92 (b);

"convey" and "conveyance", when referring to the conveyance of a strata lot to a purchaser, means any of the following in respect of which an application to the land title office has been made to register:

(a) a transfer of a freehold estate in the strata lot;

(b) an agreement for sale of the strata lot;

(c) an assignment of a purchaser's interest in an agreement for sale of the strata lot;

(d) an assignment of a strata lot lease in a leasehold strata plan;

"eligible voters" means persons who may vote under sections 53 to 58;

"judgment" means a judgment of a court, and includes costs awarded in respect of the judgment;

"landlord" means an owner who rents a strata lot to a tenant and a tenant who rents a strata lot to a subtenant, but does not include a leasehold landlord in a leasehold strata plan as defined in section 199;

"limited common property" means common property designated for the exclusive use of the owners of one or more strata lots;

"majority vote" means a vote in favour of a resolution by more than 1/2 of the votes cast by eligible voters who are present in person or by proxy at the time the vote is taken and who have not abstained from voting;

"occupant" means a person, other than an owner or tenant, who occupies a strata lot;

"operating fund" means a fund for common expenses that usually occur either once a year or more often than once a year, as set out in section 92 (a);

"owner" means a person, including an owner developer, who is

(a) a person shown in the register of a land title office as the owner of a freehold estate in a strata lot, whether entitled to it in the person's own right or in a representative capacity, or

(b) if the strata lot is in a leasehold strata plan, as defined in section 199, a leasehold tenant as defined in that section,

unless there is

(c) a registered agreement for sale, in which case it means the registered holder of the last registered agreement for sale, or

(d) a registered life estate, in which case it means the tenant for life;

"owner developer" means

(a) a person

(i)  who, on the date that application is made to the registrar for deposit of the strata plan, is registered in the land title office as

(A)  the owner of the freehold estate in the land shown on the strata plan, or

(B)  in the case of a leasehold strata plan as defined in section 199, the lessee of the ground lease of the land, or

(ii)  who acquires all the strata lots in a strata plan from the person referred to in subparagraph (i), and

(b) a person who acquires all of the interest of a person who is an owner developer under paragraph (a) in more than 50% of the strata lots in a strata plan;

"phased strata plan" means a strata plan that is deposited in successive phases under Part 13;

"purchaser" means a person, other than an owner developer, who enters into an agreement to purchase a strata lot or to acquire a strata lot lease in a leasehold strata plan as defined in section 199, but to whom the strata lot or strata lot lease has not yet been conveyed or assigned;

"registrar" means a registrar of titles as defined in the Land Title Act, and includes a deputy registrar or acting registrar under that Act;

"regulations" means regulations made by the Lieutenant Governor in Council under section 292;

"residential strata lot" means a strata lot designed or intended to be used primarily as a residence;

"rule" means a rule of a strata corporation made under section 125 or 197;

"section", when used in reference to a strata corporation, means a section of the strata corporation created under section 192 or 193;

"Standard Bylaws" means the bylaws set out in the Schedule of Standard Bylaws;

"strata corporation" means a strata corporation established under section 2;

"strata lot" means a lot shown on a strata plan;

"sue" means the act of bringing any kind of court proceeding;

"suit" means any kind of court proceeding;

"superintendent" means the Superintendent of Real Estate;

"Supreme Court" means the Supreme Court of British Columbia;

"tenant" means a person who rents all or part of a strata lot, and includes a subtenant but does not include a leasehold tenant in a leasehold strata plan as defined in section 199 or a tenant for life under a registered life estate;

"3/4 vote" means a vote in favour of a resolution by at least 3/4 of the votes cast by eligible voters who are present in person or by proxy at the time the vote is taken and who have not abstained from voting;

"unanimous vote" means a vote in favour of a resolution by all the votes of all the eligible voters;

"unit entitlement" of a strata lot means the number indicated in the Schedule of Unit Entitlement established under section 246, that is used in calculations to determine the strata lot's share of

(a) the common property and common assets, and

(b) the common expenses and liabilities of the strata corporation.

(2)  A word or expression in this Act has the meaning given to it in the Land Title Act, unless it is defined in this Act or the context requires otherwise.