VPRS 8321 Conveyancing Files: II [SAMPLE ONLY RETAINED]

This series comprises files created to document property transactions of government clients managed by the Victorian Crown Solicitor (after 1987 known as the Victorian Government Solicitor's Office [VGSO]). (Conveyancing refers to the transfer of property and property rights).The Crown Solicitor acted as solicitor to the Executive Government, government departments and government instrumentalities. It was the then Conveyancing Branch of the Crown Solicitor's Office that conducted property purchases, also known as crown purchases, for government clients seeking to buy land from citizens. (The Lands Department, VA 538, was responsible for the selling of crown land until 1980 when the Crown Solicitor took over this functional responsibility as part of the Government's asset sales program.)Each sale generated a separate conveyancing file with a file cover upon which the list of parties was written as well as the transaction date and sequential number. Within the file cover the following documents can be found: inwards and copies of outwards correspondence, certificates of title, draft conveyances, requisitions of title and indentures.Permanent Sample RetainedThese files are subject to a PROV disposal schedule (PROS 88/4) and are of temporary value due to the fact that they only contain the Crown Solicitor's copy of various documents. In assenting to their temporary status the PROV required the retention of 50 files, chosen at random from each tenth year ie: 1860, 1870, 1880, 1890...1970, 1980 etc.. It should be stressed that these files are retained to demonstrate the workings of the Crown Solicitor's office not because of the intrinsic value of the information contained therein. Thus this series will only provide fortuitous access to information on particular land sales and vendors. It may be worth consulting records of the various agencies referred to as land purchasers in the records description list for their records of such transactions. These agencies include the Board of Land & Works, Closer Settlement Commission, Country Roads Board and the Education Department.