Can the owners' general meeting be held by video conference or can votes be cast remotely?

Question

José Manuel Alburquerque · Accepted Answer

Yes, if the by-laws provide for it or the owners' general meeting has agreed to it. In Catalonia, since 2015 the law has allowed owners to attend the meeting by video conference or by another means that allows them to take part live, but only where one of those two provisions exists. The general authorisation of the Covid period ceased to apply on 30 June 2022. Postal voting is not provided for, but an owner who cannot attend can delegate their vote to another owner with written instructions for each item on the agenda. Meetings by video conference The by-laws may provide for attendance at the meeting by video conference or another similar remote means. If they do not, the meeting itself can agree to it for subsequent meetings, in principle by a simple majority. Including it in the by-laws requires four-fifths, like any other amendment to the by-laws. The means used must allow live participation, that is, following the meeting and speaking while it is taking place. Neither a recording nor a forum of written messages will do. Whoever connects must be identifiable. Their vote must be recorded in the minutes with their name and their share, like everyone else's. The law speaks of attending remotely and requires the notice of the meeting to state where it will take place. That is why the prudent course is to call the meeting at a physical location and also provide the link for joining online. It is doubtful whether the meeting can be held entirely online, without a room. During Covid, a temporary rule allowed meetings by video conference even if the by-laws did not provide for them and the meeting had not agreed to them. It ceased to apply on 30 June 2022. In the rest of Spain, the Horizontal Property Act (“Ley de Propiedad Horizontal”) does not yet regulate remote meetings, although there is a reform going through Parliament which is not yet law and would not apply in Catalonia. Voting without attending Catalan law does not provide for voting by post or in writing. Anyone who cannot go to the meeting has these options: Joining by video conference, if the by-laws or the meeting allow it. Appointing another person in writing as their representative, who attends and votes on their behalf. Delegating their vote to another owner, with a written document naming that owner and valid for that specific meeting. The document can state how to vote on each item on the agenda. It must be received before the meeting starts. In resolutions requiring four-fifths or unanimity, moreover, the vote of an owner who did not attend counts in favour if they do not object in writing within the month following notification of the resolution. If they object, it counts against. Resolutions adopted in writing without a meeting were only allowed temporarily during Covid.