Also known as: sign · signs · signed · signing · signatures · signatory · signatories
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A mark or symbol executed or adopted by a person with the intention of authenticating a writing or other record. The signature supplies the element of personal assent required for the validity of deeds, statutes, pleadings, fee agreements, leases, and removal notices.
Sierra Santos prepared a deed conveying her cabin to Sean Steele. She wrote the names of the parties and the property description but never signed the document before handing it to Sean. Sean recorded the deed and later claimed title. The court held the conveyance invalid because the grantor never executed the required signature.
The House passed a revenue bill and sent it to the Senate, which added amendments and returned it. Both chambers approved the final version and presented it to the President. The President took no action for nine days. The bill became law without his signature because Congress remained in session.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Sasha Stone, an unrepresented plaintiff, filed a complaint in federal court but omitted any signature. The defendant moved to strike the pleading. The court ordered Sasha to correct the omission within fourteen days. When she failed to sign, the court struck the complaint from the docket.
Sarah Sullivan retained Sterling Manufacturing's counsel on a contingency basis for a products liability suit. The lawyer sent a written agreement stating the percentage fee and expense allocation but never obtained Sarah's signature. After settlement, Sarah refused to pay the contingent share. The lawyer could not enforce the fee because the client had not signed the agreement.
Steven Silva agreed orally to lease warehouse space from Southland Foods for three years at a fixed rent. The landlord prepared a writing identifying the parties, premises, term, and rent but signed only its own copy. Steven never signed. When the landlord later sought to enforce the lease, the court held it unenforceable against Steven because he had not signed the memorandum.
Sylvia Santos, defendant in a state-court contract action, filed a notice of removal in federal court. The notice contained a short statement of grounds and copies of all served papers but bore no signature. The plaintiff moved to remand. The court struck the unsigned notice and remanded the case because the removal statute requires a signature under Rule 11.
An electronic sound, symbol, or process attached to or logically associated with a writing and executed or adopted with intent to sign satisfies the requirement in most jurisdictions and under the cited rules.
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The deed fails to satisfy the statutory requirements for a valid conveyance, so title does not pass even if the document is recorded and delivered.
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Only the party to be charged must sign. The lease remains enforceable against that signer even if other parties have not signed.
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Yes. If the president takes no action within ten days while Congress is in session, the bill becomes law without signature.
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…selected from a group of applicants. The negotiations contemplated a nominal rent of $1 per year, but no agreement had yet been signed. See 268 Conn. 1, 9, 61, 843 A. 2d 500, 509-510, 540 (2004). [^maj-5]: See also Calder v. Bull , 3 Dall. 386, 388 (1798) ("An ACT of the Legislature (for I cannot call it a law) contrary…