AUSTRALIA
Walter MacCallum, Russell Kennedy Lawyers
Does your jurisdiction maintain a list of trusted
entities to qualify e-signatures?
Unlike the EU, there is no legislated or government-endorsed
list of trusted e-signature entities in Australia. However, various
e-signature technologies are widely used, such as DocuSign.
Please provide a quick overview of the law, i.e., types
of contracts that qualify for use with e-signature.
Under common law, Australian courts broadly accept electronic
signing. Each jurisdiction's ETA further clarifies this
position. The ETAs differ slightly but generally, the electronic
signing method used for most standard contracts should identify the
signatory and indicate their intention to execute the document
electronically. The signing technology used must also be "as
reliable as appropriate" in the circumstances. Lastly, each
signatory must consent to the other's electronic execution.
