A property lawyer deals with legal issues that relate to transactions on residential as well as commercial property. It is important to understand the different types of property as per the law and also the different kinds of property lawyers if seeking to hire one.
According to the law, property is anything possessed by an entity or a person. There are two categorizations of property; real property and personal property.
Difference between Personal and Real Property
Personal property covers both tangible and intangible possessions that can be owned and are movable. It is important to note that they are not associated with or affixed to land. They include business equipment, office furniture and business vehicles. In the process of business transactions, disputes may arise regarding these, and a property lawyer will come in handy.
Real property is any property that is fixed permanently, immovable from the location. These are things like land and buildings (or anything built on it).
Transactional and Litigation Lawyers
Some of the specialist areas covered by such a lawyer include mortgage lending, property finance and social housing. Property lawyers are distinguished by whether they are transactional or litigation focused.
The transactional lawyer in this field handles negotiation of property transactions and the drafting of documents that have to do with the negotiation. Litigation lawyers on the other hand will be found in court arguing whether a contract or sale agreement was dishonoured. They are also called upon when a landlord or tenant breaches the law. Criminal lawyers may later be brought in depending on the nature of the case.
Residential and Commercial Property Lawyers
If handling residential conveyancing then the office is most likely region based with every day people as clients. There is heavy client contact via phone calls and messages regarding the hassles of property purchase experiences. Residential property lawyers sometimes deal with several files simultaneously since one has to keep track of numerous clients while communicating with solicitors, third parties and estate agents.
A commercial property lawyer on the other hand is usually found in large firms and handles work from commercial clients.The range of work is wide and covers drafting commercial leases, negotiating land contracts and due diligence. One could be handling a small scale trader while another handles large scale developments.
Because clients are not savvy in manoeuvring shrewd developers, property agents, property managers, landlords, brokers, investors and tenants, they often prefer hiring property lawyers.
Share10 May 2016
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