The minutes: what they must contain to be valid

Minutes are not a summary of the meeting: they are the proof of what was agreed. A resolution properly taken but badly recorded can end up being unenforceable.

What cannot be missing

• Date, time and place, and whether it is a first or second call.
• Who attends, in person and by proxy, and the participation quotas they add up to. Without this no majority can be checked.
• The agenda exactly as it was called.
• The resolutions, with the exact wording of what was approved and the result of the vote: in favour, against and abstentions, in owners and in quotas.
• Signature of the chair and the secretary.

The most frequent mistake

Writing "the repair of the entrance hall is approved" and nothing more. A year from now nobody will know with which quote, which company or for how much money, and that resolution is useless for actually doing anything.

A resolution has to be readable on its own, without having been in the room.

The votes matter more than they seem

Many resolutions require qualified majorities, and some affect those who voted against differently. If the minutes do not record who voted what, the majority cannot be evidenced and the resolution cannot be applied correctly. Noting it takes a minute at the time and is unrecoverable afterwards.

Deadlines and notification

The minutes must be closed and sent to the owners within the period the law sets, and resolutions have their own challenge period. Sending them late is not just bad practice: it can complicate carrying out what was agreed.

The owners who did not attend

They have the right to know the resolutions and, in certain cases, to record their disagreement within the deadline. That is why it matters so much that notification is evidenced, not merely done.

And the minute book

Properly stamped and up to date. It is the building history and the first thing anyone buying a flat there asks for. Losing it means losing the community memory.