A European Community Framework For Electronic Signatures

On 13 December 1999 the European Parliament passed Directive 1999/93/EC on a Community framework for electronic signatures in e-commerce. It is due to be implemented in the UK by 19 July 2001. The declared aim of the Directive ‘is to facilitate the use of electronic signatures and to contribute to their legal recognition’. The Directive establishes a legal framework for electronic signatures and certain certification-services in order to ensure the proper functioning of the European on-line internal market.

At the heart of the Directive is the issue of the legality of e-contracts and, accordingly, there is a need to establish a legal basis to them. A large part of that legal basis is the recognition that needs to be afforded to electronic signatures and the need to have properly constituted certification authorities.