Legal Q&A · Property Transfer

May a real estate agency draft property purchase agreements itself?

Law as at 21 July 2026

Answered by , Czech and Slovak attorney, admitted to the Slovak and Czech Bars (SAK 300422 · ČAK 19654).

Short answer

Regularly drafting documents recording legal acts for remuneration constitutes legal services reserved to attorneys. A real estate agency regularly drafting purchase agreements in this way would provide legal services without authorisation. Moreover, only an attorney may authorise a property transfer agreement, meaning draft it and confirm its compliance with the law.

Under the Advocacy Act (No. 586/2003 Z. z.), legal practice includes drafting documents recording legal acts, giving legal advice and preparing legal analyses where performed regularly and for remuneration (Section 1(2)). In Slovakia, attorneys and other persons specified by law provide these services (Section 1(3)). A real estate agency that regularly drafts property purchase agreements for payment would therefore provide legal services without authorisation.

This does not prevent an agent helping a client with supporting documents or communication. The boundary is regular paid contract drafting and legal advice, which belong to an attorney.

Who may authorise an agreement?

The rules are particularly strict for authorisation of a property transfer agreement. Authorisation involves drafting the agreement, establishing the parties’ identities and assessing whether the agreement conflicts with or circumvents the law or breaches good morals. The attorney confirms this with an authorisation clause (Section 1a). An authorised agreement has a practical advantage: the land registry decides within a shorter period and the work is covered by the attorney’s insurance. Only an attorney, not a real estate agency, may authorise it.

How to arrange this in practice

A sensible division of responsibilities is straightforward: the agency brokers the transaction and coordinates cooperation; an attorney prepares and authorises the agreement and handles the registration application. The client gains assurance of legal correctness and the agency avoids the risk of unauthorised legal services. We prepare and authorise agreements and handle registration through preparation of agreements and registration applications and comprehensively through legal services for real estate agencies. We also offer attorney authorisation of an agreement separately.

This answer provides general information on the law as at 21 July 2026. It does not constitute legal services or replace an assessment of an individual case. The details of your situation may differ. Book a consultation to discuss them.

More legal questions

All questions and answers
  1. Is buying property from a bankruptcy estate worthwhile? Will I take over the title sheet encumbrances? Encumbrances are often less problematic than they appear. Realising assets in bankruptcy extinguishes all security rights, subject to narrow exceptions, so the buyer generally does not take over old security interests on the title sheet. The real risks lie elsewhere: the administrator sells without warranties of physical condition and sale terms usually exclude defect liability; bids are commonly binding; and a co-owner’s pre-emption right may overtake a winning bid for a share. Due diligence should therefore precede the bid.
  2. We want to gift our house to our children but live there for life. How can we do this safely? Agree the gift and lifetime residence easement in one contract and register them simultaneously, so the recipient acquires the house already subject to your right. Define the scope of use and how house and utility costs are shared. “We will gift it first and add the easement later” offers no protection: between the registrations you have no right, and creating the easement then depends on the new owner’s willingness.
  3. The client bought the property after the estate agency agreement ended. Is commission still payable? Usually yes, if the estate agency introduced the buyer. The Commercial Code expressly states that concluding the brokered agreement after the agency agreement has ended does not prevent commission becoming due. For a consumer client, the Civil Code awards remuneration where the result was achieved through the intermediary’s efforts. Causation matters, rather than the calendar date, and the agency must prove it. No commission is payable where the client found the buyer independently without the agency’s involvement.
  4. Do I need my spouse’s consent when selling or buying property? If the property forms part of marital community property, its sale is not an ordinary matter. Without the other spouse’s consent, the agreement is voidable; the overlooked spouse may invoke invalidity within a three-year limitation period. The clearest consent is to sign as a seller, or otherwise provide a separate written declaration with a certified signature. A property purchase falls into marital community property by law regardless of who signed. Property acquired before marriage, by gift or inheritance is sold by its sole owner.

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Mgr. Patrik Tulinský, LL.M. Czech and Slovak attorney · SAK 300422 · ČAK 19654

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