Court Muddies the Water on Electronic Signatures in New York

In Prudential Ins. Co. v. Dukoff, et al., a federal district court in New York has left unclear whether state regulators can add requirements for electronic signatures that go beyond those defined in the state’s electronic signatures law. While the court suggested that the state insurance department’s requirements were inconsistent with the statute, it nonetheless deferred to the department’s opinion that an electronic signature on an insurance application is valid only if the insurer can verify the identity of the person signing the application.

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