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.

本系列由一系列档案组成，用于记录维多利亚州王室法律顾问（1987年后更名为维多利亚州政府法律顾问办公室，简称VGSO）所管理的政府客户的房产交易情况。（房产转让（Conveyancing）指不动产及不动产权利的移转行为。）

彼时的王室法律顾问曾担任维多利亚州执行政府、各政府部门及政府机构的法律顾问。该办公室下设的房产转让科（Conveyancing Branch），专门为向市民购置土地的政府客户承办房产收购业务，此类收购亦被称为“王室购地”。（1980年以前，维多利亚州土地厅（VA 538）负责王室土地的售卖工作；后作为政府资产出售计划的一部分，该职能转由王室法律顾问办公室承接。）

每一笔房产交易均对应一份独立的房产转让档案，档案封面上标注有交易各方清单、交易日期及序列编号。档案封套内通常包含如下文件：收讫函件及外发函件副本、产权证书、房产转让草案、产权查册函及正式契约。

永久样本留存
本系列档案遵循维多利亚州公共档案馆（Public Record Office Victoria, PROV）的处置方案（PROS 88/4），且仅留存王室法律顾问办公室所持各类文件的副本，因此仅具有临时保存价值。维多利亚州公共档案馆在认可其临时保存属性的同时，要求按每十年为一个周期随机抽取50份档案予以留存，涉及年份包括1860年、1870年、1880年、1890年……1970年、1980年等。

需特别说明的是，留存此类档案的目的在于展示王室法律顾问办公室的运作流程，而非其内部所载信息本身具有内在价值。因此，本系列档案仅能偶然获取特定土地交易及卖方的相关信息。建议查阅档案目录中列明的各土地采购机构的相关记录，以获取此类交易的完整资料，此类机构包括土地与工程委员会、紧密定居委员会、乡村道路局及教育部。