Co-ownership charges can be contested before the judicial court (tribunal judiciaire) with jurisdiction over the location of the building, within a time limit that depends on what you are challenging: two months from notification of the meeting minutes to dispute the general meeting’s decision approving the accounts, or five years to contest an allocation error in your individual statement. An apportionment clause that violates the law, however, remains challengeable without any time limit.
The three time limits not to confuse
- Two months: the action to annul the resolution approving the annual accounts or voting an expense, reserved to co-owners who voted against or were absent, runs from notification of the minutes by the managing agent (article 42, paragraph 2, of the law of 10 July 1965). This is a forfeiture period: once it has expired, the claim is inadmissible.
- Five years: challenging the amount personally billed (an error in your share, an expense charged to the wrong unit, double billing) falls under the five-year limitation period of article 42, paragraph 1. This is also the time limit the co-owners’ association has to claim arrears.
- No time limit: a clause of the co-ownership regulations that apportions charges in violation of article 10 of the law is deemed null and void. The court then carries out a new apportionment, effective from the date of the claim.
The three valid grounds for challenge
1. The expense was not voted
Except for urgent works and routine expenses provided for in the provisional budget, the managing agent may only incur an expense after a vote by the general meeting. An invoice for works not on the agenda, a managing agent’s fee with no contractual basis, a service decided by the co-ownership council alone: these amounts are excluded.
2. The expense is not chargeable to your unit
Article 10 distinguishes between upkeep and administration charges, apportioned according to shares, and charges for collective services and shared equipment, apportioned according to the objective benefit to each unit. Commonly disputed: the lift for a ground-floor unit, collective heating for premises disconnected from the network, maintenance of equipment reserved for part of the building.
3. Apportionment or calculation errors
Shares applied that differ from those in the division description, an apportionment key changed without a vote, an incorrect balance carried forward, an adjustment applied twice. These errors can be demonstrated with supporting documents.
The procedure, step by step
- Obtain the supporting documents. You have the right to inspect the supporting documents for charges with the managing agent before the general meeting (article 18-1 of the 1965 law). Request the general ledger, your individual statement, the invoices and the shares applied, in writing.
- Vote against. If the vote approving the accounts seems unfounded to you, vote against it: only those who voted against or were absent can bring an annulment action.
- Send the managing agent a formal notice by registered letter, specifying the disputed amount and demanding the correcting entry.
- Attempt conciliation. For low-value disputes, a prior attempt at amicable resolution is a condition of admissibility (article 750-1 of the code of civil procedure). The conciliator of justice (conciliateur de justice) is free of charge.
- Summon before the judicial court with jurisdiction over the building, which has exclusive jurisdiction in co-ownership matters. Above €10,000, representation by a lawyer is mandatory. The court may appoint a court-appointed accountant to reconstruct the accounts.
A practical warning
Contesting does not exempt you from paying. Unilaterally suspending fund calls exposes you to acceleration of the debt under article 19-2 of the 1965 law: the co-owners’ association can then claim the full amount due, plus costs. Pay the fund call while expressly reserving your rights, then request reimbursement of the sums wrongly paid.
To contest a co-ownership decision or a refusal by the managing agent, Cécile Zakine, Attorney at Law advises you and defends your interests before the courts (Grasse, Nice, and Aix-en-Provence Court of Appeal). Quick consultation.
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