E-Commerce and the Law of Digital Signatures

In the past five years, over 55 countries have begun adopting UNCITRAL's (United National Commission on International Trade Law) Model Laws of 1999 and 2001 regarding the use and validity of e-signatures. Dozens of pieces of legislation and legislative proposals now exist around the world on the subject of e-signatures. While the model laws may look the same on paper, in practice they can vary widely. The Center for International Legal Studies, in cooperation with UNCITRAL, has gathered experts in over 25 jurisdictions to analyse the impact of these standards in their respective domestic e-commerce regimes. These experts show how the Model Laws including UNCITRAL's Uniform Rules on Electronic Signatures, the Model Law on Electronic Commerce 1996, and the Model Law on Electronic Signatures 2001 are being implemented today in each of the countries.