diff --git a/llvm/docs/DeveloperPolicy.rst b/llvm/docs/DeveloperPolicy.rst
--- a/llvm/docs/DeveloperPolicy.rst
+++ b/llvm/docs/DeveloperPolicy.rst
@@ -292,8 +292,15 @@
 
 Below are some guidelines about the format of the message itself:
 
-* Separate the commit message into title, body and, if you're not the original
-  author, a "Patch by" attribution line (see below).
+* Separate the commit message into title and body separated by a blank line.
+
+* If you're not the original author, ensure the 'Author' property of the commit is
+  set to the original author and the 'Committer' property is set to yourself.
+  You can use a command similar to
+  ``git commit --amend --author="John Doe <jdoe@llvm.org>`` to correct the
+  author property if it is incorrect. See `Attribution of Changes`_ for more
+  information including the method we used for attribution before the project
+  migrated to git.
 
 * The title should be concise. Because all commits are emailed to the list with
   the first line as the subject, long titles are frowned upon.  Short titles
@@ -314,11 +321,6 @@
 
 * If the patch fixes a bug in bugzilla, please include the PR# in the message.
 
-* `Attribution of Changes`_ should be in a separate line, after the end of
-  the body, as simple as "Patch by John Doe.". This is how we officially
-  handle attribution, and there are automated processes that rely on this
-  format.
-
 * Text formatting and spelling should follow the same rules as documentation
   and in-code comments, ex. capitalization, full stop, etc.
 
@@ -489,6 +491,11 @@
 list, development list, or LLVM bug tracker component. If someone sends you
 a patch privately, encourage them to submit it to the appropriate list first.
 
+Our previous version control system (subversion) did not distinguish between the
+author and the committer like git does. As such, older commits used a different
+attribution mechanism. The previous method was to include "Patch by John Doe."
+in a separate line of the commit message and there are automated processes that
+rely on this format.
 
 .. _IR backwards compatibility: