Electronic Signature Laws by State: Do They Differ?

Are Electronic Signatures Laws Differ by State

An e-signature is a digitalized signature of a person that can be placed on electronic documents, such as forms and contracts, to confirm that they were filled out with full consent and clear mind. The most common type of electronic signature is, of course, a written signature (scanned, digitally drawn, or generated), but it can also be a sound recording or a symbol.

ESIGN was enacted by the US Federal Law in 2000, and it became a part of the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act (UETA). In the same year, New York and Illinois issued their own versions of the Federal Electronic Signature Act.

Almost 20 years after, Arizona, Nevada, and Tennessee changed their UETAs to start o

ff the integration of more advanced and secure ESIGN protocols with the use of blockchain technologies.

As for the EU, the unified e-sign law was established only in 2016. Before that, all states of the union had their own policies, which had lead to various electronic signature legal issues. Today, the process in all EU members is coordinated by the 2016 electronic Identification and Trust Services for Electronic Transactions (eIDAS). The legality of electronic signatures for particular types of documents still varies from country to country, so check this out for your country.

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Electronic Signature Laws by State

In most states esignature laws are a direct adoption of UETA without major state-specific alterations. However, some states have their more specific acts. Here's a brief overview of electronic signature laws in the selection of states:

Alabama

State Law: Alabama Electronic Transactions Act.

Main Difference: Mirrors the UETA but emphasizes its non-applicability to certain documents like wills, testamentary trusts, and certain areas of family law.

Arizona

State Law: Arizona Electronic Transactions Act (AETA).

Main Difference: Largely follows UETA, but contains specific provisions that highlight the validity and enforceability of electronic records and signatures.

Arkansas

State Law: Arkansas Electronic Records and Signatures Act

Main Difference: Mirrors UETA and provides that if a law requires a signature, an electronic signature satisfies the law.

California

State Law: California Electronic Transactions Act (CETA)

Main Difference: Closely mirrors UETA but has specific provisions addressing the timing of electronic records and signatures.

Florida

State Law: Florida Electronic Signature Act

Main Difference: Similar to UETA but with additional requirements for notaries and stronger consumer protection provisions.

Georgia

State Law: Georgia Electronic Records and Signatures Act

Main Difference: Adopts UETA and emphasizes uniformity with the federal E-SIGN Act.

Illinois

State Law: Electronic Commerce Security Act (ECSA)

Main Difference: Unlike UETA, the ECSA differentiates between secure and non-secure electronic signatures, granting different legal weights to each.

Indiana

State Law: Indiana Electronic Transactions Act (IETA)

Main Difference: While closely following UETA, IETA provides that a record or signature may not be denied legal effect or enforceability solely because it is in electronic form. It also contains provisions for governmental use of electronic records and signatures.

Michigan

State Law: Michigan Electronic Transactions Act (META)

Main Difference: Adopts UETA but has specific provisions about governmental use.

Nevada

State Law: Nevada Revised Statutes Chapter 719

Main Difference: One of the first states to enact e-signature laws; has provisions supporting blockchain technology.

New York

State Law: Electronic Signatures and Records Act (ESRA)

Main Difference: Stresses that e-signatures have the same validity as manual signatures.

Washington

State Law: Electronic Authentication Act

Main Difference: Focuses on ensuring the security and integrity of e-signatures.

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Electronic Signature vs. Digital

Another important aspect to understand is that electronic and digital signatures are two different types of signatures according to the electronic signature Federal Law.

Electronic signature

Includes most of the e-sign solutions and can use such authentication methods as corporate IDs, signer’s email, password, or a PIN-code sent over the cellular network. The signature must be approved by an embedded digital certificate.

Digital signature

Must use a digital certificate from certified trust service providers (TSP). The approval instrument is called a certificate authority (CA), and it’s embedded into signed documents with the use of encryption.

FAQ

Questions may pop up all the time in your head when it comes to laws that govern digital signatures. We answered the most probable of them to provide you with a deeper understanding of the topic.