HR documentation process for Property lawyers: employee records and role papers as tidy as the client files
A property practice is careful with client documents but loose with its own people papers. A simple HR documentation process gives each person clear terms, a written role and a record that stands up later.
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Share your requirementsWhy HR documentation process matters in property lawyers
Staff in property practices start on a message or a handshake. Appointment letters are missing, stipend terms differ and duties are described out loud. Runners who carry originals and money have no written role. When a dispute or a departure arrives, the firm cannot show what was agreed.
A documentation process sets out which papers every person receives and the firm keeps: appointment letter, role note, custody and confidentiality undertakings, pay terms, leave rules and exit papers. It places them in a standard file with an index, assigns one person to look after them and reviews them at set intervals. It is a modest effort that avoids large arguments.
Property work involves registry visits, stamp duty receipts and original title deeds moving between clients, banks and offices. When a runner or clerk handles these, the firm needs written proof of who carried what and under whose instruction. Without it, a lost original becomes the firm's problem and an argument between staff.
How to set it up
1. List the papers each person should have
For juniors, assistants, runners and clerks: appointment letter, role note, pay terms, confidentiality and custody undertakings, and acknowledgement of firm rules.
2. Write simple templates
Plain-language drafts that a partner can check with your professional adviser. Keep them short and consistent.
3. Collect missing papers for current staff
Audit existing files, find gaps and issue the missing documents with the person's acknowledgement.
4. Assign one keeper
One named person holds employee files, tracks renewals and reviews.
5. Close with exit papers
A checklist at departure: return of originals and keys, last pay, handover notes and acknowledgement.
6. Add a custody register
A simple log of originals handed to a person, with date, file name, purpose and signature on both handover and return.
7. Record who may do what
A short authority note that names who may sign receipts, collect documents from the registry or banks and handle client money, so juniors know their limits.
Check these first
Before changing anything, find out what is true today. Use your own records for a defined period and note gaps in the evidence. The review may take longer if records are incomplete or spread across teams.
- Pick five staff files and count missing appointment letters.
- Ask a runner whether they have a written role.
- See whether custody duties for original documents are written anywhere.
- Check if exit handovers include a return of files and keys.
- Pick one original document that left the office last month and see if the register shows who had it and when it came back.
GullyHR can do this with you. Read how we approach HR documentation process in general, or share your requirements and we will tell you where to start.
Questions owners ask
Yes, in simple form. A letter, a role note and a few undertakings avoid later arguments, and a tidy file takes little time to keep.
Draft them in plain words yourself, then have a qualified professional confirm they suit the rules that apply. Using their review once covers every later use.
Once a year, and at joining, role change and exit. A short yearly check catches gaps before they become disputes.
Yes. They handle the most sensitive papers. A short letter with duties, pay terms and custody rules protects both sides. Have your adviser confirm how it applies to their type of engagement.
Use the exit checklist: collect all originals, notes and keys, update the custody register, and have a senior sign off. Do this before the final pay is released.
We set up the interview and hiring process for property lawyers
Every business interviews, but few have a written process that works the same way for every role and every interviewer. GullyHR designs yours, from the role brief to the offer, trains your managers to run it, and can run it for you on the roles you hand us.