Are electronic signatures legal in Kansas?

What the Kansas act says

Kansas enacted the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act in 2000 (L. 2000, ch. 120), effective July 1, 2000, at K.S.A. 16-1601 to 16-1620. It covers records and signatures created on or after that date (K.S.A. 16-1604). The core rules sit in K.S.A. 16-1607:

• A record or signature can't be denied legal effect or enforceability just because it's electronic.
• A contract can't be denied legal effect just because an electronic record was used to form it.
• An electronic record satisfies a law that requires a writing.
• An electronic signature satisfies a law that requires a signature.

An electronic signature is an electronic sound, symbol or process attached to or logically associated with a record and adopted with intent to sign (K.S.A. 16-1602). In a proceeding, evidence can't be excluded just because it's electronic (K.S.A. 16-1613).

Electronic signatures vs. digital signatures in Kansas

Kansas's act also defines a digital signature: a type of electronic signature made with an asymmetric crypto system, so anyone with the signer's public key can check that the signer's private key made it and the message hasn't changed since (K.S.A. 16-1602). The Revisor notes that several Kansas additions aren't part of the uniform act, including:

• A registration system for certification authorities, run by the secretary of state, with a filing fee and financial security requirement (K.S.A. 16-1617 to 16-1619).
• A rule that state agencies offering electronic signatures must adopt written standards for them, and that the secretary of state sets rules for agencies' digital signatures (K.S.A. 16-1605(g)–(i)).
• Statements that the act doesn't require anyone to use electronic or digital signatures (K.S.A. 16-1605(f), (h)).

For an ordinary business contract, none of that is required. A typed or drawn electronic signature adopted with intent to sign meets the general rule in K.S.A. 16-1607. Learn more about electronic vs. digital signatures.

Agreement and copies

The act applies only between parties who have each agreed to deal electronically, judged from context and conduct, and a party can refuse to do the next transaction electronically (K.S.A. 16-1605(b)–(c)). When a law requires information in writing, an electronic record only works if the recipient can print or store it (K.S.A. 16-1608(a)).

What's excluded in Kansas

• Wills, codicils and testamentary trusts (K.S.A. 16-1603(b)(1)).
• The Uniform Commercial Code, except K.S.A. 84-1-306 and Articles 2 and 2a on sales and leases of goods (K.S.A. 16-1603(b)(2)).

Kansas and the federal ESIGN Act

For deals that cross state lines, the federal ESIGN Act applies as well (15 U.S.C. § 7001). Watch two of its rules: notices such as utility shutoffs and primary-residence foreclosures or evictions are left out (15 U.S.C. § 7003), and consumers have to consent before you send them required information electronically. Our guide explains how the federal and Kansas rules fit together.

Notarization

When a law requires notarization, the notary's electronic signature with the required information satisfies it (K.S.A. 16-1611). Kansas's Revised Uniform Law on Notarial Acts, added in 2021, also lets a Kansas notary perform a notarial act for a remotely located individual by communication technology (K.S.A. 53-5a15). See remote online notarization. SignMaster doesn't notarize documents.

Kansas's retention rule asks for a final version that stays accurate and accessible (K.S.A. 16-1612). With SignMaster, each signer can download that final PDF, and its certificate of completion shows what happened and when. No one signs without first agreeing to sign electronically, and SignMaster keeps a record of that agreement.