A STUDY OF THE THEORY OF APPRAISAL FOR SELECTION By ...

Importance of preserving intact the archival and probative nature
of the archives. It recognizes the imperative that the integrity
of the records must not be altered for anyone's 'benefit', for
such alteration would, in fact, destroy the potential value that
derives from their inherent nature. The Committee's commitment
to the preservation of an impartial record, however, does not
result in the creation of a paradigm of conflict with the
interest of researchers. Clearly, the focus of the appraisal
exercise remains the selection of historically valuable records
for the research community.
The major proposal of the Grigg Report is the institution of
a two-tiered review process that combines a first review of the
records at five years from the closure of the files, and a second
review at twenty-five years for the purpose of implementing the
historical criterion. The first review is to be done by each
department's record officer. Its purpose is to destroy those
records "which they do not need to retain further for their own
Departmental purposes."70 While maintaining the primacy of the
historical criterion, the Report concludes that because the
identification of historical value is in no way related to the
general work of the reviewing officers, "the solution to the
problem must lie in the application of this criterion by indirect
means."71
The indirect means of identifying historical value is found
70 Ibid, 80, paragraph 240.
71 Ibid, 29, paragraph 58-59.
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