Can a body corporate ban smoking in common areas?

Banning Smoking in Common Areas

Smoking in the common areas of a scheme may soon be a thing of the past.

At the start of 2023, the Queensland Government announced its in-principle decisions for some reforms to strata law, including intentions to hand more power to bodies corporate over smoking in common areas.

Bodies corporate will seemingly be given the power to make by-laws that prohibit all smoking from outdoor and communal areas. This doesn’t quite cross the bridge to prohibiting smoking inside lots and on balconies that was considered in the Artique decision (see above), but it puts more power into the hands of other lot owners. It also emphasises the importance of committees having by-laws that are legally enforceable.

The full legislative detail is still being finalised, but it is clear the government will strengthen the hand of bodies corporate seeking to ban smoking in common areas. Sign up to our mailing list for the most up-to-date information as these laws are released.

Hynes Webinars related to Smoking in Strata

Passive smoking in strata: https://blog.hyneslegal.com.au/webinars/smoking-in-strata-webinar

Landlords, bodies corporate and smoking: https://blog.hyneslegal.com.au/webinars/smoking-in-strata

Strata law reform and smoking: https://blog.hyneslegal.com.au/webinars/strata-laws-what-should-happen-next