The quarterly publication of the International Legal Technology Association
Issue link: https://epubs.iltanet.org/i/411912
PEER TO PEER: THE QUARTERLY MAGA ZINE OF ILTA BEST PRACTICES 18 Continuing to rely on paper-based signatures unnecessarily disrupts these processes, uses up valuable time printing documents just to be signed and incurs blatant security risks — all of which add to organizational costs. These signature-related issues can be solved in a timely and cost-effective way with digital signatures, whose adoption in the legal market has been on the upswing lately. A recent ALM online reader survey revealed that 40 percent of respondents already use digital signatures and another 39 percent are "planning to implement in the next 12 months" or "see the need" to implement digital signatures. Digital signing enables legal professionals to tighten their grip on this vulnerable area while improving cost- effectiveness, collaboration and efficiency. WHAT ARE DIGITAL SIGNATURES? Digital signatures, also referred to as advanced or standards-based electronic signatures, are a type of electronic signature that provides the highest levels of security and non-repudiation. A digital signature results from a cryptographic operation that creates a uniquely coded message binding the document and the signer. Digital signatures provide proof of signer identity and data integrity and cannot be copied, forged or tampered with. Because digital signatures are standards-based, they can be validated using widely available applications such as Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel or any PDF reader. DO THEY HOLD UP IN COURT? Digitally signed documents are legally enforceable and stand up to close scrutiny in a court of law. In fact, digital signatures are arguably more secure than paper-based ones if we consider the technology that makes it possible to verify the signer's identity and intent, and the integrity of the content signed. Wet-ink signatures are rarely required today to comply with local and international legislation, whereas digital signatures comply with global standards from standards bodies such as the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and the Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards (OASIS); regulations such as those outlined in the Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act (ESIGN) and the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act (UETA). Digital About the Author John Marchioni is the General Manager & VP Business Development at ARX, provider of the CoSign standard digital signature solution. He has over 25 years of experience in U.S. and international high-tech markets related to business process automation and intellectual property licensing. Prior to joining ARX, John held management positions with companies engaged in R&D and the deployment of process management and information security solutions. John can be contacted at johnmarc@arx.com. Digital Signatures 101 Keeping Your Processes Paper-Free, Secure and Compliant Mobility and the cloud are hot technology themes for 2014. They enable lawyers to access information and do their work regardless of location. One central issue for lawyers working on the go is how to handle the many legal documents they need to sign as part of their daily processes.