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ND Senate Bill 2127

Legislation

State: North Dakota
Signed: March 25, 2025

Effective: August 01, 2025

Summary

North Dakota enacts the Uniform Electronic Estate Planning Documents Act, authorizing Notaries to use electronic signatures on electronic nontestamentary estate planning documents.

Affects

Creates new chapter 59-22 in the North Dakota Century Code. 

Changes
  1. Defines “nontestamentary estate planning document” to mean a record relating to estate planning that is readable as text at the time of signing and is not a will or contained in a will.
  2. Includes as nontestamentary estate planning documents the following records that create, exercise, modify, release, or revoke: (a) A trust instrument; (b) A trust power that under the terms of the trust requires a signed record; (c) A certification of a trust under NDCC 59-18-13; (d) A durable power of attorney under NDCC 30.1-30; (e) An agent's certification of the validity of a power of attorney and the agent's authority; (f) A power of appointment; (g) An advance directive, including a health care power of attorney, directive to physicians, natural death statement, living will, and medical or physician order for life-sustaining treatment; (h) A record directing disposition of an individual's body after death; (i) A nomination of a guardian for the signing individual; (j) A nomination of a guardian for a minor child or disabled adult child; (k) A mental health treatment declaration; (l) A disclaimer as defined under NDCC 30.1-10-01; and (m) Any other record intended to carry out an individual's intent regarding property or health care while incapacitated or on death.
  3. Excludes as nontestamentary electronic estate planning documents a deed of real property or certificate of title for a motor vehicle, watercraft, or aircraft.
  4. Clarifies that electronic nontestamentary estate planning documents or signatures on nontestamentary estate planning documents are not required.
  5. Provides that a nontestamentary estate planning document or a signature on a nontestamentary estate planning document may not be denied legal effect or enforceability because the document or signature is in electronic form.
  6. Provides that if any other North Dakota law requires a nontestamentary estate planning document to be in writing or signed, an electronic record of the document and an electronic signature on the document satisfies the requirement. 
  7. Provides that if a North Dakota law requires a signature or nontestamentary estate planning document to be notarized, acknowledged, verified, or made under oath, the requirement is satisfied if an individual authorized to perform the notarization, acknowledgment, verification, or oath attaches or logically associates the individual's electronic signature on the document together with all other information required to be included under law.
  8. Provides that an individual may create a certified paper copy of an electronic nontestamentary estate planning document by affirming under penalty of perjury before a Notary that the paper copy is a complete and accurate copy of the document.
Analysis

North Dakota becomes the 5th state to enact the Uniform Law Commission’s Uniform Electronic Estate Planning Documents Act (UEEPDA). The new law specifically authorizes a nontestamentary estate planning document that requires notarization to be notarized electronically (using either in-person electronic notarization or remote online notarization). The UEEPDA was needed because the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act (UETA) enacted by North Dakota in 2001 specifically exempted transactions governed by a law related to the creation and execution of wills, codicils (amendments) to wills, and testamentary trusts. The UEEPDA authorizes the latter (testamentary trusts) and other nontestamentary estate planning documents noted above (see Changes #2) to be created and signed electronically. Electronic wills and codicils are now governed under the Uniform Electronic Wills Act enacted by North Dakota in 2021. Like the UETA, the new law permits but does not require a nontestamentary estate planning document to be created and signed electronically. Therefore, individuals may continue using traditional paper documents and pen-and-ink signatures for these documents if preferred. 

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