Ken Moyle on Contract Creation With eSignature and Wet Signature

We received some questions about contract creation with eSignatures and wet signatures. What happens when not all parties use electronic signature to create a contract? Can I still have a contract when one party chooses to wet sign and the other uses DocuSign? Are ESIGN consents still required?

Ken Moyle, chief legal officer of DocuSign, responds:

Under the above scenario, there is only one party electing to affix his signature electronically, and his consent is implicit in his act. The other party does not have to consent, because he is not electronically signing. Contract law still applies, and with the help of UETA, the writing requirement is still met as to the e-signing party's participation in the formation of the contract.

If I send you an offer electronically, under contract law I have made you a bona fide offer and under ESIGN/UETA I cannot duck out of that solely because it was in electronic form. So if you accept it by printing out my offer and signing it with pen and paper, we've got a contract. Similarly, if you counter on paper and I accept your counter electronically by using my DocuSign signature, we have a contract.

DocuSign provides functionality that enables signers to sign on paper instead of eSign. Our Fax Back Support allows signers to print documents, wet sign and fax back or upload the signed documents into the DocuSign envelope. This process also enables you to include documents you need to have notarized in your DocuSign envelope.

DocuSign enables you to have the security of the market-leading electronic signature and online signing process with the flexibility to fit your needs - for more information, take a look at DocuSign's electronic signature features and functionality.