Welcome to The Property Standardisation Group

The PSG is pleased to announce that it won the Project Team of the Year award at The 5th Cuthbert Scottish Legal Awards 2007, as yet further recognition of the continuing success of its collaborative effort to streamline property transactions for the benefit of clients and lawyers alike.

Who We Are

The Property Standardisation Group (“PSG”) grew out of discussions amongst property lawyers at four Scottish law firms, namely Dundas & Wilson, Maclay Murray & Spens, McGrigors and Shepherd + Wedderburn. The firms were concerned that too much time was being spent in property transactions in negotiating forms of documentation and seeking to agree procedures, all of which could and should be regulated by a common standard. The documents and procedures were not contentious, as such, but we all had our own ways of doing things and, ultimately, of achieving the same end. The PSG therefore sought to address this key issue of standardisation.

The immediate benefits of standardising property documents and procedures are seen as:

• avoiding wasting time on minutiae, allowing us to concentrate on the things that really matter in the transaction
• speeding up the whole process for the benefit of the clients and also making transactions more profitable, and
• managing risk.

From the outset, the philosophy of the PSG has been to agree documents and procedures that each member firm will follow in transactions amongst themselves and to promote the use of them in transactions with other firms. To that end the PSG has enlisted the help of other Scottish firms who are also engaged in commercial property work to whom the PSG has reported progress and from whom the PSG has invited comment. The consultants for this purpose are Anderson Strathern, Archibald Campbell & Harley, Biggart Baillie, Burness, DLA, HBJ Gately Waring, McClure Naismith, Morton Fraser, Murray Beith Murray, Paull & Williamsons, Pinsent Masons, Semple Fraser, Thorntons, Tods Murray, Warners and Wright Johnston & Mackenzie: their input is gratefully acknowledged by the PSG. The clear aim is however to agree forms of documentation and procedure which can be used by all firms engaged in commercial property work, not merely restricted to the firms involved in the PSG to date.

What the Plan Is

In the various sections of this website you will find details of standardised documents which the PSG has produced already. PSG documentation is branded and accompanying guidance notes indicate that deviations from its standard forms are not authorised by the PSG. The PSG is talking to the Law Society of Scotland, the Scottish Property Federation and other property bodies with a view to disseminating information about its activities. The PSG will be delighted to hear from other firms who are interested in its aims.

The PSG is delighted to have been "Highly Commended" in the Financial Times Innovative Lawyers Awards in 2006.

PSG wins the Innovation in Legal Services Award at The Firm Law Awards of Scotland.

Contact us:

• iain.macniven@mms.co.uk
• douglas.hunter@dundas-wilson.com
• rachel.oliphant@mcgrigors.com
• ann.stewart@shepwedd.co.uk

You will need to have Adobe Acrobat reader installed on your computer before you can view or print any of the acrobat (PDF) documents on this site.

If you experience any difficulty in navigating this website or accessing documents, please contact a member of the PSG for assistance.