Designed change
An approved departure checklist that reallocates active work, checks shared access and records the actions completed in each system.
Illustrative scenario combining common practice needs. Software shown is a suggested stack.
Find the responsibilities before closing access
The proposed review would identify active matters, upcoming commitments and work awaiting the departing person's decision. A manager would assign replacement owners and confirm that they could access the documents they needed. Information-retention decisions would follow the practice's requirements, rather than being inferred from whether an account was still active.
Verify the handover in each system
Approved access changes would be checked in the relevant systems, including shared workspaces and any separately granted access. The checklist would record who completed each action and who verified the handover. Connected systems would be reviewed individually where one account change did not establish that all access and ownership had been updated.
The practical lesson
Close the access and transfer the responsibility. Both need verification, and neither should be assumed from the other.