Which documents can’t be signed electronically in the US?

Wills, codicils and testamentary trusts

ESIGN and UETA do not cover wills, codicils or testamentary trusts. A few states now have their own laws allowing electronic wills, but they come with strict requirements of their own. Do not use a general e-signature service for a will: follow your state’s rules, normally with a lawyer.

Adoption, divorce and other family law matters

ESIGN does not cover documents about adoption, divorce or other family law matters. Courts and agencies set their own rules for these, so follow the instructions they give you.

Court orders and court documents

Court orders, notices and official court documents are left out of ESIGN. Courts have their own rules for filing and signing, often through their own e-filing systems.

Certain notices

ESIGN does not allow some important notices to be given only electronically, including notices that utility services such as water, heat or power will be cut off; notices of default, repossession, foreclosure or eviction for a person’s main home; notices cancelling health or life insurance; product recall notices that affect health or safety; and documents that must travel with hazardous materials.

Some commercial law documents

Parts of the Uniform Commercial Code, such as the rules on negotiable instruments like cheques and promissory notes, are left out of ESIGN and UETA. Sales of goods and leases of goods are covered.

Documents that must be notarized or witnessed

Deeds, some affidavits and other documents that must be notarized or witnessed need that step done properly. Many states now allow remote online notarization through approved providers, but a general e-signature service is not a notary. Use the process your state, the recorder’s office or the other side requires.

What to do

• Check whether a law, a court, an agency or the other side requires paper, ink, a witness or a notary.
• Ask a lawyer licensed in your state if the document is important and you are unsure.
• Use paper, or the process you have been given, for those documents. Use electronic signatures for everything else.

Docket Secure reminds you about these documents in its Terms of Service. For the general rule, read are electronic signatures legal in the US.