What is UETA?

Quick answer · the 30-second read

UETA is the model law that makes electronic signatures valid in US state law. It was written in 1999 and has been adopted by 49 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands. New York is the only state that has not adopted it, and uses its own law instead. UETA works alongside the federal ESIGN Act, and for most everyday transactions the state version is the one that applies. One condition is easy to miss. UETA only applies where both sides have agreed to do business electronically, although that agreement can be shown by how they behave.

KEY FACTS UETA stands for the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act. It was approved by the Uniform Law Commission on 29 July 1999. It is a model law rather than a federal statute. Each state passes its own version. It has been adopted by 49 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands. California was the first to adopt it, in September 1999. Washington adopted it in 2020 and Illinois in 2021, each replacing an older state law. New York is the only state that has not adopted it. It uses the Electronic Signatures and Records Act instead. A record or signature cannot be denied legal effect just because it is electronic. UETA only applies where both parties have agreed to do business electronically, which can be shown by how they behave. It does not cover wills, codicils or testamentary trusts, or most of the Uniform Commercial Code. Where a state has adopted UETA, its version generally applies in place of the federal rules.

What does UETA stand for?

The Uniform Electronic Transactions Act. It was written in 1999 by the Uniform Law Commission, a body that drafts model laws for US states to adopt.

UETA is not a law in itself, it is a template. Each state passes its own version, which is why the rules are broadly consistent across the country but not identical.

It was written at a point when businesses were starting to contract by email and nobody was sure whether those agreements counted. UETA answered that question, and every state except one eventually agreed with the answer.

What does it actually say?

There are four core rules:

A record cannot be denied legal effect just because it is electronic.
A contract cannot be denied legal effect just because an electronic record was used to make it.
Where a law requires something in writing, an electronic record satisfies that.
Where a law requires a signature, an electronic signature satisfies that.

UETA also defines an electronic signature broadly, as a sound, symbol or process attached to or logically associated with a record, which the person carried out or adopted intending to sign. That covers a typed name, a drawn signature, a tick box and a good deal else. What makes it a signature is the intention behind it.

There is a further rule that becomes important in disputes. An electronic signature is attributable to a person if it was the act of that person, and this can be shown in any way, including by pointing to the security steps used.

See Can an electronic signature be forged? for why that rule decides most arguments.

Do both parties have to agree to go electronic?

Yes, UETA applies only to transactions where each party has agreed to conduct business by electronic means. It does not force anyone to accept electronic records or signatures, and someone who wants to deal on paper can insist on it.

In practice this is a low bar. Agreement does not have to be written down or stated. It can be shown by the surrounding circumstances and by how people behave. Two businesses that have negotiated by email throughout have agreed to conduct the transaction electronically, whether or not either said so.

The condition still has teeth at the edges. Someone who has only ever dealt with you on paper, and who has no email address on file, has not agreed to anything.

Which states have adopted it?

Forty-nine states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands.

California was first, in September 1999, only weeks after the model law was approved. Most states followed during the early 2000s. Two were much later. Washington adopted UETA in 2020, replacing its own Electronic Authentication Act, and Illinois did the same in 2021, replacing its Electronic Commerce Security Act.

That leaves New York.

Why is New York different?

New York passed its own law, the Electronic Signatures and Records Act, which took effect in March 2000. At the time it was ahead of most states. It has never been replaced with UETA.

The practical result is that New York is the only state where two different laws govern electronic transactions. Its own Act covers transactions entirely within the state. The federal ESIGN Act covers anything crossing state lines or going abroad, and overrides the state law in those cases.

This is not a settled position. The New York City Bar Association published a report in 2026 urging the legislature to bring the state law into line with UETA, arguing that the current arrangement creates confusion and pushes parties to choose the law of other states. Anyone working on a New York transaction should check the state position rather than assume UETA applies.

How does UETA fit with the ESIGN Act?

They say much the same thing, at different levels of government.

	UETA	ESIGN Act
What it is	A model law that each state passes for itself.	A federal statute that applies across the country.
Year	1999	2000
Where it applies	In the states that have adopted it, which is all but New York.	To transactions affecting trade between states.
Needs both sides to agree to go electronic?	Yes, though agreement can be shown by conduct.	Not as a general rule, but consumers must consent before being sent required information electronically.
Which one applies	Usually this one, because a state that has adopted UETA can apply its own version.	Sits underneath as the national baseline.

The ESIGN Act allows a state that has adopted UETA to apply its own version in place of the federal rules. So in most everyday transactions, the law that actually governs is the state’s UETA, with ESIGN sitting underneath as a baseline. Where ESIGN keeps its grip is on consumer disclosures and the list of excluded documents.

See What does the ESIGN Act require?.

What does UETA not cover?

Its scope is limited to business, commercial and governmental transactions. A purely personal arrangement with no commercial element falls outside it.

It also excludes specific categories. Wills, codicils and testamentary trusts are outside it, as they are under federal law. So is most of the Uniform Commercial Code, which has its own rules for things such as negotiable instruments, with limited exceptions. States can also exclude further transactions in their own version, which is one reason to check the state statute.

For the federal exclusions, which overlap with these, see What documents cannot be signed electronically?.