Rule 8.75 - Requirements for signatures on documents(a) Documents signed under penalty of perjuryWhen a document must be signed under penalty of perjury, the document is deemed to have been signed by the declarant if filed electronically, provided that either of the following conditions is satisfied:
(1) The declarant has signed the document using an electronic signature (or a secure electronic signature if the declarant is not the electronic filer) and declares under penalty of perjury under the laws of the State of California that the information submitted is true and correct; or(2) The declarant, before filing, has physically signed a printed form of the document. By electronically filing the document, the electronic filer certifies that the original signed document is available for inspection and copying at the request of the court or any other party. In the event this second method of submitting documents electronically under penalty of perjury is used, the following conditions apply: (A) At any time after the electronic version of the document is filed, any other party may serve a demand for production of the original signed document. The demand must be served on all other parties but need not be filed with the court.(B) Within five days of service of the demand under (A), the party or other person on whom the demand is made must make the original signed document available for inspection and copying by all other parties.(C) At any time after the electronic version of the document is filed, the court may order the electronic filer to produce the original signed document in court for inspection and copying by the court. The order must specify the date, time, and place for the production and must be served on all parties. (Subd (a) amended effective January 1, 2014.)
(b)Documents not signed under penalty of perjury(1) If a document does not require a signature under penalty of perjury, the document is deemed signed by the electronic filer.(2) When a document to be filed electronically, such as a stipulation, requires the signatures of multiple persons, the document is deemed to have been signed by those persons if filed electronically, provided that either of the following procedures is satisfied: (A) The parties or other persons have signed the document using a secure electronic signature; or(B) The electronic filer has obtained all the signatures either in the form of an original signature on a printed form of the document or in the form of a copy of the signed signature page of the document. The electronic filer must maintain the original signed document and any copies of signed signature pages and must make them available for inspection and copying as provided in (a)(2)(B). The court and any party may demand production of the original signed document and any copies of the signed signature pages as provided in (a)(2)(A)-(C). By electronically filing the document, the electronic filer indicates that all persons whose signatures appear on it have signed the document and that the filer has possession of the signatures of all those persons in a form permitted by this rule. (c)Judicial signaturesIf a document requires a signature by a court or a judicial officer, the document may be electronically signed in any manner permitted by law.
Rule 8.75 amended effective 1/1/2022; renumbered effective 1/1/2017; adopted as rule 8.77 effective 7/1/2010; previously amended effective 1/1/2014.Advisory Committee Comment
The definition of "electronic service" has been amended to provide that a party may effectuate service not only by the electronic transmission of a document, but also by providing electronic notification of where a document served electronically may be located and downloaded. This amendment is intended to modify the rules on electronic service to expressly authorize electronic notification as a legally effective alternative means of service to electronic transmission. This rules amendment is consistent with the amendment of Code of Civil Procedure section 1010.6, effective January 1, 2011, to authorize service by electronic notification. (See Stats. 2010, ch. 156 (Sen. Bill 1274).) The amendments change the law on electronic service as understood by the appellate court in Insyst, Ltd v. Applied Materials, Inc. (2009) 170 Cal.App.4th 1129, which interpreted the rules as authorizing electronic transmission as the only effective means of electronic service.
Advisory Committee Comment
The requirements for electronic signatures that are compliant with the rule do not impair the power of the courts to resolve disputes about the validity of a signature.