Documents · Daily operations · 4 min read

Place and release a legal hold

Protect a file from disposal while a legal request or matter is open, and lift the hold when it ends.

Before you begin

You need dms.dispose. This permission is not given to operational roles by default. You can hold library files and files indexed from other modules.

Place a hold

1. Open Documents > Library, select the file and click Open document.
2. Choose More > Place legal hold.
3. In Legal request or matter enter the reason, for example Dubai Courts case TEST-2026-001. It is required and up to 240 characters. The reason is shown on the record, the side panel and the Retention register.
4. Click Confirm.

The message is 'Legal hold placed.'. The state chip becomes Held and the Retention card shows 'Legal hold: Yes' with the matter. Propose disposal is disabled. The file now appears when you tick Under legal hold in the library.

If you leave the reason empty: 'Say why the file is held - the legal request or matter.'

Release a hold

1. Open the document and choose More > Release legal hold.
2. Enter the authority for ending the hold when asked.
3. Click Confirm.

The message is 'Legal hold released.'. The reason is cleared and disposal can be proposed again.

What a hold does

• A held file never appears in Past their retention on the Disposal review screen.
• A disposal proposal cannot be started: 'This file is under legal hold and cannot be disposed of.'
• If a hold is placed after a disposal was proposed, approval is refused: 'This file was placed under legal hold after the proposal; it is not disposed of.' The reviewer should reject the proposal.
• Holding a file kept by another module marks it Held in the library only. The original record and its attachment are not changed.

Good to know

• The hold flag always wins over an expiry state in the list.
• Legal hold is always on and cannot be switched off.
• See Review and approve disposals for what happens at the end of retention.