I am often asked about electronic signatures, and in which jurisdictions and on what forms and documents e-signatures are legally recognized. Below are some links to references on electronic signatures I’ve found in my searches.
Electronic signatures are increasingly becoming not only recognized, but the standard of security and transaction efficiency in an increasingly paperless world. To me, the clear point of no turning back was when I was able to complete the purchase of a house in Florida completely online, with all signatures on Docusign, in 2016. If you can buy a house on Docusign or Adobe Sign, there should be no reason you can’t open an account or transfer your pension or estate entirely electronically. While blockchain technology may one day make digital signatures more open and less reliant on proprietary platforms, I will focus on which solutions are used in “real money” transactions.
Hong Kong has legally recognized e-signatures since 2000-2004
Update: Hong Kong law firm Facey & Associates recently posted this on the validity of e-signatures in Hong Kong.
The Hong Kong Electronic Transactions Ordinance (Cap 553) was enacted in 2000 and updated in 2004, granting full legal recognition of electronic documents and electronic signatures wherever written documents are used. That said, there are several offices I work with in Hong Kong that still request paper forms and paper signatures, but this seems more a matter of operational setup than a matter of law.
The Hong Kong government here publishes two recognized providers of electronic certificates: the Hong Kong Post Office and Digi Sign.
Saxo recently mentioned that they will be able to handle fully electronic onboarding for accounts under around EUR 200,000.
Paperless account opening
Opening brokerage accounts with many firms, including Interactive Brokers and Saxo, is now 100% paperless.
Nevada explicitly recognizes electronic trusts, executed with electronic signatures
Nevada revenue statute NRS 163.0095 defines electronic trusts, and requirements for the electronic signatures used to execute them. Reference to this was madein this comparison of Alaska, Delaware, Nevada, New Hampshire and South Dakota trust laws.
Other sources: ACTEC
Harvard Law Review Article on Electronic Wills
This article in the Harvard Law Review goes into detail about different types of electronic wills: those stored offline on a personal hard drive, those posted online (say on social media), and those securely entrusted to an online service provided.
Electronic wills case #1: The Horton v Jones case on an electronic will
This podcast explains the Horton v Jones case where one person’s attempt at an electronic will was improperly executed, and referenced to by a handwritten (holographic) will, but still recognized by the court.
Conformed Signatures
In plain text documents, you may have seen something called a “Conformed Signature”, which is simply typed in the form “/s/ John Doe”. This of course doesn’t include the security, tamper-resistance, or timestamp features of a proper digital signature, but can be typed with a few keys on any keyboard. Some links on conformed signatures: