E-signatures in commercial contracts in Slovenia
Authors
- Definition and formal requirements of written legal statements or legal statements legally binding if the law requires written form
- Examples for legal statements and contracts where written form is required
- Are there special legal provisions for digital archiving and storage of electronic documents? If yes, please describe them
- Main and relevant court practices
- In which cases are documents only with wet ink signatures accepted?
- List of the relevant national legislation
- Are the following use cases deemed as written legal statements / legal statements legally binding if the law requires written form in your jurisdiction?
jurisdiction
1. Definition and formal requirements of written legal statements or legal statements legally binding if the law requires written form
There is a court practice referring to the form of submissions in certain legal procedures. Definition of a written submission is: a submission, which is written or printed out and signed with a handwritten signature (a submission in a hard copy), or an submission in an electronic form and signed with a secure electronic signature, certified by a qualified certificate (an electronic submission).
2. Examples for legal statements and contracts where written form is required
- Instalment sales agreement;
- donation agreement;
- construction agreement;
- licence agreement;
- agreement on lease of hotel capacity;
- del credere warranty and non-compete clause in an agency agreement; and
- surety statement.
3. Are there special legal provisions for digital archiving and storage of electronic documents? If yes, please describe them
Electronic Business and Electronic Signature Act (ZEPEP) includes a general provision:
- if an act or other regulation sets out that certain documents, records or data shall be stored, they may be stored in electronic form if the following conditions are met:
- the data contained in an electronic document or record is accessible and suitable for subsequent use;
- the data is stored in the format in which it has been generated, sent or received, or in a format, which accurately represents the data generated, sent or received;
- from the saved electronic message it is possible to determine its origin, whom it was sent to and the time and location of the sending and receipt thereof; and
- the technology and procedures used to adequately prevent the modification or deletion of data that is not easily established, or if there is a reliable guarantee regarding the inalterability of the electronic message.
Protection of Documents and Archives and Archival Institutions Act and Decree on the protection of documentary and archive material includes provisons on digital archiving and storage.
4. Main and relevant court practices
N/A
5. In which cases are documents only with wet ink signatures accepted?
N/A
6. List of the relevant national legislation
- Electronic Business and Electronic Signature Act (ZEPEP),
- EU eIDAS Regulation,
- Obligations Code.
7. Are the following use cases deemed as written legal statements / legal statements legally binding if the law requires written form in your jurisdiction?
1. Electronic document signed with qualified electronic signature (QES as defined in the eIDAS Regulation) and with a time stamp | Yes |
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2. Electronic document signed with qualified electronic signature (QES as defined in the eIDAS Regulation) without a time stamp | Yes |
3. Electronic document signed with advanced electronic signature (AdES as defined in the eIDAS Regulation) and with a time stamp | No |
4. Electronic document signed with advanced electronic signature (AdES as defined in the eIDAS Regulation) without a time stamp | No |
5. Electronic document signed with advanced biometric signature | No |
6. Electronic document signed with a simple, standard electronic signature (SES) | No |
7. Scanned electronic version of the original paper-based document with handwritten signature sent as an attachment in ordinary e-mail without an electronic signature, but with standard e-mail signature panel | No |
8. Legal statement sent as a text of an ordinary e-mail without an electronic signature, but with a standard e-mail signature panel | No |
9. Legal statement sent in an SMS | No |
10. Electronic document with a copy-pasted image of a handwritten signature, sent as an attachment of an ordinary e-mail | No |
11. Electronic document with the typed name of the signer and sent as an e-mail attachment | No |
12. Electronic legal statement sent in a social-media message sending application (e.g. Messenger, Viber, LinkedIn, Facebook message, etc.) | No |
13. Electronic legal statement sent in a chat application | No |
14. Electronic document created on an electronic platform ensured by the other party requesting the legal statement (without an electronic signature) by another party whom the operator of the platform granted access | No |
15. Electronic document signed in DocuSign/Adobe Sign with a simple standard electronic signature (no QES or AdES) | No |
16. Electronic document signed with a qualified electronic seal as defined in the eIDAS Regulation | No |
17. Agreements accepted by the other party online, by ticking a checkbox or by clicking on a button ("click on agreements") | No |
