Electronic Contracts

It is safe to state that the world is increasingly becoming more technology dependant.

The definition of a contract is an agreement or accord between one or more parties and is concluded in order to create, regulate or dissolve certain obligations. With the introduction of the Electronic Commerce Act (e-Commerce Act) and Regulation (EU) No 910/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 July 2014 on electronic identification and trust services for electronic transactions in the internal market, electronic commerce has been facilitated by establishing legal validity of electronic records, transactions, contracts and signatures and by putting in place a legal framework for determining the time and place, when and where an electronic communication is dispatched and received.

An electronic signature, as defined under the abovementioned Regulation, covers the broad category of all electronic signatures including “any data in electronic form which is attached to or logically associated with other data in electronic form and which is used by the signatory to sign.” In other words, it is an electronic form of signature that a signer can apply to a document as evidence of their acceptance or approval. This could include a scanned signature image or the click of an “I accept” button on a website.

An advanced electronic signature is a type of electronic signature that must meet specific requirements providing a higher level of signer ID verification, security, and tamper-sealing.

Finally, a qualified electronic signature is the only electronic signature type to have special legal status in EU Member States, being the legal equivalent of a written signature. It is a specific type of electronic signature that must meet advanced electronic signature requirements and be backed by a qualified certificate, meaning a certificate issued by a trust service provider that is on the EU Trusted List and certified by an EU Member State. The trust service provider must verify the identity of the signer and vouch for the authenticity of the resulting signature.

Local and EU Legislation also provide for the protection of consumers who enter into electronic contracts, and establishing a framework within which services related to electronic signatures can be provided in Malta.