AnalysisExisting law provides definitions for particular terms used within the Code of Civil Procedure, including the terms "signature" or "subscription," which are defined to include a mark of a person, when the person cannot write, with his or her name being written near it by a person who writes his or her own name as a witness. Assembly Bill 432 adds "electronic signature" to the list of defined terms, and defines it to mean an electronic sound, symbol, or process attached to or logically associated with an electronic record and executed or adopted by a person with the intent to sign the electronic record. Essentially, the definition mirrors the definition of "electronic signature" used in the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act. AB 432 also provides that an electronic signature by a court or judicial officer is as effective as an original signature. The analysis for AB 432 points out that there are several sections in the Code of Civil Procedure that specifically require a signature by a court or court officer, but that there is no express authorization for officers to use electronic signatures. AB 432 adds uniformity to the law with respect to electronic signatures in the provisions of the Code of Civil Procedure relating to litigation and the filing of documents with the court.
Read Assembly Bill 432.