The “Electronic Execution of Documents, Industry Working Group Final Report*” was published by the Ministry of Justice on 14th March 2023.
The Working Group** was formed by the Government in 2021 “to promote and facilitate the electronic execution of documents by matching appropriate solutions to the requirements of parties to the problems they might face.”
Included within the Group’s recommendations is for a government body to set minimum performance standards for signing platforms in order to bolster the integrity of the e-signing experience and process.
Furthermore, the Report recommends consideration be given to enhanced certification of signing platforms and/or self-certification by signing platforms to deepen user confidence, thereby increasing e-signing adoption. Whilst the report did not present a definitive recommendation one way or another on this point, it was the general view that some form of accreditation be adopted.
There is no current regulatory requirement for e-signature platforms either to self-certify, or to adopt formal certification practices. As a pioneer in the online execution of real estate purchase contracts and a company with a long and well-established track record, clicktopurchase intends to remain at the forefront of best practice in the electronic signing industry, specifically within the property sector. As a result, clicktopurchase both formally and voluntarily commits to the following guarantees:
- Delivery of legal electronic signatures for the online execution of real estate purchase contracts.
- Robust and high levels of both security and trust.
- A strong and clear audit trail of the transaction process, demonstrating the purchaser’s/bidder’s intention to submit a formal legal offer to treat, thereby generating an electronic signature on an electronic contract note.
- An enhanced level of protection with the audit trail of events recorded in our blockchain ledger.
- An ability to download and save executed contract notes.
- The identity of signatories and parties to the contract are recorded within our audit trail.
The unique clicktopurchase platform was first launched in 2010 and the company has been active in the area of digital signing ever since. Experience gained over more than a decade of operations leads clicktopurchase’s management team to endorse wholeheartedly the work of the Electronic Execution of Documents, Industry Working Group. The company agrees with the following highly relevant comments from the final report.
“Since 2020, it can be confidently suggested that human behaviour has changed dramatically”.
The report recognises the “astonishing speed” with which modern technology moves and its acceleration.
“The Covid-19 pandemic demonstrates that as well as the natural evolution and gradual adoption of technology, which occurs naturally over time, driven by technological advancement, entrepreneurship and usually business need, there are occasions when there is adoption of technology due to sudden increased societal need”.
Clicktopurchase will continue to advance and enable users of the platform to complete their transactions with speed, certainty, accountability, transparency and trust.
Neil Singer, CEO clicktopurchase
* Industry Working Group on eSignatures Final Report
**Neil Singer, the CEO of clicktopurchase, was an appointed member of the Industry Working Group.
