The Retention & Legal Holds card, in the Exports section of the compliance hub, is where you tell BrokerPlus how long to keep each record kind, and where you can freeze a deal or client's records so nothing on it is flagged for disposal while a matter is open.
When You'd Use This
Set your retention schedule once, during compliance setup, so the daily scan has something to check against. Come back to place a legal hold any time a file is subject to litigation, a regulatory inquiry, or an internal investigation and needs preserving regardless of age. Release a hold once whatever required it is over.
The Record Classes
Retention policies apply to six record classes, each mapped to a specific kind of file in your book:
| Class | What it covers |
|---|---|
| Deal File | The deal record itself |
| Consent | Client consent records |
| Identity Verification | IDV checks |
| Screening | Sanctions and PEP screening runs |
| Disclosure | Disclosure artifacts |
| Suitability | Suitability assessments |
Setting a Retention Schedule
A policy combines record class, jurisdiction (federal or a specific province), and years to retain, 1 to 100. Until you add at least one, the card shows "No retention schedule yet" and the daily scan has nothing to check.
- In the Exports section, select Add policy.
- Choose a Record class and a Jurisdiction, then set Retain (years).
- Add a note under Basis (optional), such as "PCMLTFA s.6, 5-year record-keeping", so anyone reading the schedule later understands the number.
- Select Add policy (or Update policy, if that class and jurisdiction pair already has one).
A class and jurisdiction can only have one active policy. Adding a second for a pair you've already set updates the existing years in place rather than duplicating the row. You can also edit years directly in the policy table and select Save Policies.
Every night, the retention scanner checks each policy's cutoff against your records and files a review task for whichever have crossed it. It never deletes anything on its own; it puts the count in front of you for a disposal decision.
Placing a Legal Hold
- Under Legal Holds, select New Hold.
- Enter a reason of at least five characters, such as "Litigation hold for file 20260142".
- Enter a deal ID, a contact ID, or both.
- Select File Hold.
A held record is excluded from the disposal-review count, however far past its retention cutoff it is. A hold has no expiry of its own; it stays active until someone releases it.
A hold only covers what you name it against
The scanner matches a hold by deal ID or contact ID. Deal File, Disclosure, and Suitability records only carry a deal ID, so a hold on a contact alone won't shield those classes for that person's deal. To freeze everything connected to a file, hold both the deal and the contact.
Releasing a Hold and What It Shows on a File
Select Release next to an active hold to clear it; the row is marked released with the date, and a released hold can't be reopened, only replaced. While active, anyone viewing that deal's Compliance tab sees a red "This file is under legal hold" banner listing every reason on file, visible to whoever works the deal, not just whoever set it.
What to Do Next
- Tour the Compliance Record on a Deal to see where the legal hold banner and record history live.
- Export Your Compliance Records to generate a hash-stamped archive of what a policy or hold applies to.
- Upload Your Program Documents to put your written retention basis on file alongside this schedule.