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Bill Summary · HB 44

Summary — HB 44 (GSC Electronic Signatures)

Short title: GSC Electronic Signatures
Primary sponsor: Rep. Davis
Status (as of documents): Read and referred; Regular Message Sent to Senate. Effective date: when the act becomes law.

Purpose

To clarify and modernize how electronic signatures may be used in two statutory contexts, pursuant to a review requested by the General Assembly and recommended by the General Statutes Commission: (1) reciprocal attorneys’‑fees provisions in business contracts (G.S. 6‑21.6); and (2) initial notary commission applications (G.S. 10B‑5). The bill specifies when an electronic signature will satisfy statutory “signed by hand” requirements.

Key provisions

  • G.S. 6‑21.6 (reciprocal attorneys’‑fees provisions):

    • Clarifies that reciprocal attorneys’‑fees provisions in business contracts are enforceable only if all parties “sign by hand.”
    • Explicitly permits a business contract to be considered “signed by hand” if a party’s electronic signature (as defined in G.S. 66‑312) originates from an affirmative act indicating acceptance and execution — examples include typing the party’s name or writing the party’s signature with a finger or stylus on a touchscreen.
    • Also allows a party’s manual signature delivered as an electronic reproductive image (e.g., a scanned handwritten signature) to satisfy the “signed by hand” requirement.
    • Leaves other substantive provisions about attorneys’ fees and judicial discretion unchanged.

  • G.S. 10B‑5 (notary qualifications / commissions):

    • Retains the statutory requirement that an initial notary application include the applicant’s signature written with pen and ink.
    • Authorizes the Secretary of State to permit applications to be submitted electronically in a format the Secretary prescribes.
    • Directs the Secretary to establish a process for submission of the applicant’s signature prior to commissioning, and that process may include electronic submission of the signature.

  • Minor recodifications: the bill recodifies one subsection of 10B‑5 into a different internal location in that section (technical rearrangement).

Who is affected

  • Businesses and contracting parties — particularly those relying on reciprocal attorneys’‑fees clauses — because certain electronic signing methods will now be explicitly recognized as satisfying the “signed by hand” statutory criterion.
  • Courts and arbitrators — which interpret and apply G.S. 6‑21.6 when deciding fee awards.
  • Applicants for initial notary commissions and the Secretary of State’s office — because the notary application process is permitted to be modernized to accept electronic submissions while retaining a pen‑and‑ink signature requirement for the initial application.
  • Register of deeds offices and other administrative offices only to the extent they interact with the revised application procedures.

Procedural / timeline notes

  • The bill was introduced and assigned to Judiciary committees (Judiciary 1, then Rules in the House) and had its first reading Feb. 5, 2025 (per bill history). It becomes effective upon enactment (when it becomes law).
  • The changes are statutory (amendments to North Carolina General Statutes) and require no implementing appropriation; the Secretary must adopt procedures for electronic submission.

Potential impacts / considerations

  • Legal clarity: the bill reduces uncertainty about whether certain electronic signing methods satisfy the “signed by hand” requirement for enforcing reciprocal attorneys’‑fees clauses, which may increase the enforceability of contracts executed electronically.
  • Administrative modernization: permitting electronic submission of notary applications may streamline processing but retains a safeguard (pen‑and‑ink signature requirement for initial application) while allowing the Secretary flexibility to accept electronic signatures by a prescribed process.
  • Courts will continue to assess reasonableness of fees under existing standards; this bill does not alter those substantive standards, only the form of permissible signatures.

If you want, I can extract the exact statutory language changes side‑by‑side (current text vs. proposed amendments) or prepare a short legal-implications memo for contract drafters and notary applicants.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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