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STATE OF OKLAHOMA
1st Session of the 59th Legislature (2023)
SENATE BILL 468 By: Howard
AS INTRODUCED
An Act relating to estate planning; creating the
Uniform Electronic Estate Planning D ocuments Act;
providing short title; defining terms; construing
provisions; stating scope of act; providing
exception; providing for applica bility of principles
of law and equity; clarifying that use of electronic
record or signature not required; prohibiti ng certain
waiver; requiring recogni tion of electronic non-
testamentary estate planning document or signature;
establishing attribution and effect of elec tronic
record and signature; establishing requirements for
notarization and acknowledgement; authorizing
electronic witnessing and attestation for certain
documents; establishing requirements for retention of
certain electronic records; providing exception;
allowing additional requirements imposed by
governmental agency; authorizing creation of
certified paper copy of certain electronic documents;
providing for admissibility of certain el ectronic
documents or signatures; providing for uniform ity of
application and construction; clarifying relation to
certain federal provisions; specifying applicability
of provisions to certain electronic documents;
providing for severability; providing for
codification; and providing an effective date.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
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SECTION 1. NEW LAW A new s ection of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as S ection 901 of Title 84, unless there is
created a duplication in numb ering, reads as follows:
This act shall be known and may be cited as the “Uniform
Electronic Estate Planni ng Documents Act”.
SECTION 2. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 902 of Title 84, unless there is
created a duplication in numb ering, reads as follows:
As used in the Uniform Electronic Estate Planning Documents Act:
1. “Electronic” means relating to technology havin g electrical,
digital, magnetic, wireless, optical, electromagnetic, or similar
capabilities;
2. “Electronic record” means a record created, generated, sent,
communicated, received, or stored by electroni c means;
3. “Electronic signature” means an electronic symbol or process
attached to or logic ally associated with a record and executed or
adopted by a person with the intent to sign the record ;
4. “Information” includes data, text, images, codes, comput er
programs, software, and databases;
5. “Non-testamentary estate planning document ” means 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. Non-testamentary
estate planning document includes:
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a. a record readable as text at the time of signing that
creates, exercises, modifies, releases, or revokes :
(1) a trust instrument,
(2) a trust power that under the terms of the trust
requires a signed record,
(3) a memorandum or certification of a trust,
(4) a durable power of attorney,
(5) an agent’s certification of the validity of a
power of attorney and the agent ’s authority,
(6) a power of appointment ,
(7) an advance directive including a health-care
power of attorney, directive to physicians,
natural death statement, living wi ll, and medical
or physician order for life -sustaining treatment,
(8) a record directing disposition of an individual ’s
body after death,
(9) a nomination of a guardian for the signing
individual,
(10) a nomination of a guardian for a minor child or
disabled adult child,
(11) a mental health treatme nt declaration, or
(12) any other record intended to carry out an
individual’s intent regarding property or healt h
care while incapacitated or on death, and
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b. Non-testamentary estate planning document does not
include a deed of real property or certificate of
title for a motor vehicle, watercraft, or aircraf t;
6. “Person” means an individual, estate, business or nonprofit
entity, government or governmental subdiv ision, agency, or
instrumentality, or other legal entity;
7. “Power of attorney” means a record that grants authority to
an agent to act in place of the principal, ev en if the term is not
used in the record;
8. “Record” means information:
a. inscribed on a tangible medium, or
b. stored in an electronic or othe r medium and
retrievable in perceivable form ;
9. “Security procedure” means a procedure to verify that an
electronic signature, record, or performance is that of a specific
person or to detect a cha nge or error in an electronic record,
including a procedure that uses an algorithm, code, identifying word
or number, encryption, callback, or other acknowledgment procedure;
10. “Settlor” means a person, including a testa tor, that
creates or contributes property to a trust;
11. “Sign” means, with present inte nt to authenticate or adopt
a record:
a. execute or adopt a tangible symbol , or
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b. attach to or logically associate with the record an
electronic signature ;
12. “State” means a state of the United S tates, the District of
Columbia, Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, or other
territory or possession subject to the jurisdiction of the Unite d
States. The term includes a federally recognized Indian tribe ;
13. “Terms of a trust” means:
a. except as provided in subparagraph b of this
paragraph, the manifestation of the settlor ’s intent
regarding a trust’s provisions as:
(1) expressed in the trust instrument , or
(2) established by other evidence that would be
admissible in a judicial proceeding; or
b. the trust’s provisions as established, determined, or
amended by:
(1) a trustee or other person in accordance with
applicable law,
(2) a court order, or
(3) a nonjudicial settlement agreement ;
14. “Trust instrument” means an instrument executed by the
settlor or other person authorized by law that contains terms of the
trust including any amendments ; and
15. “Will” includes a codicil and a testamentary instrument
that appoints an executor, revokes or revises another will,
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nominates a guardian, or expressly excludes or limits the right of
an individual or class to succeed to property of the decedent
passing by intestate succession.
SECTION 3. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as S ection 903 of Title 84, unless there is
created a duplication in numb ering, reads as follows:
This act shall be construed and applied to facilitate electronic
estate planning documents and signatures consistent with other law
and be consistent with reasonable practices conc erning electronic
documents and signatures and cont inued expansion of those practices.
SECTION 4. NEW LAW A new section of law to be c odified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 904 of Title 84, unless there is
created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:
A. Except as provided in subsection B of this section, this act
shall apply to an electronic non -testamentary estate planning
document and an electronic signature on a non -testamentary estate
planning document.
B. This act shall not apply to a non-testamentary estate
planning document if the document precludes use of an electronic
record or electronic sign ature.
C. This act shall not affect the validity of an electronic
record or electronic signature that is valid under the Uniform
Electronic Transactions Act, Section 15-101 et seq. of Title 12A of
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the Oklahoma Statutes or other law of this state authorizing the use
of electronic records or electronic signatures .
SECTION 5. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Sect ion 905 of Title 84, unless there is
created a duplication in numb ering, reads as follows:
The law of this state and p rinciples of equity applic able to a
non-testamentary estate planning document shall apply to an
electronic non-testamentary estate plannin g document except as
modified by this act.
SECTION 6. NEW LAW A new sec tion of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 906 of Title 84, unless there is
created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:
A. This act shall not require a non-testamentary estate
planning document or sign ature on a non-testamentary estate planning
document to be created, generated, sent, communicated, rec eived,
stored, or otherwise proc essed or used by electronic means or in
electronic form.
B. A person shall not be required to have a non -testamentary
estate planning document in electronic form or signed electronically
even if the person previously created or signed a non-testamentary
estate planning document by electronic means.
C. No person shall waive the provisions of this section.
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SECTION 7. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 907 of Title 84, unless there is
created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:
A. A non-testamentary estate planning document or a signature
on a non-testamentary estate planning document may n ot be denied
legal effect or enforceabi lity solely because it is in elec tronic
form.
B. If other laws of this state require a non-testamentary
estate planning document to be in writing, an electronic record of
the document shall satisfy such requirement.
C. If other laws of this state require a signature on a non -
testamentary estate planning do cument, an electronic signature shall
satisfy such requirement.
SECTION 8. NEW LAW A new section o f law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 908 of Title 84, unless there is
created a duplication in numb ering, reads as follows:
A. An electronic non-testamentary estate planning document or
electronic signature on an electronic non -testamentary estate
planning document is attributable to a person if it was the act of
the person. The act of the person may be shown in any manner
including by showing the efficacy of a secu rity procedure applied to
determine the person to which the elect ronic record or electronic
signature was attributable.
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B. The effect of attribution to a person under subsection A of
this section of a document or signature is determined from the
context and surrounding circumstances at the time of its creation,
execution, or adoption and as provided by law.
SECTION 9. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statu tes as Section 909 of Title 84, unless there is
created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:
If the laws of this state require a signature or record to be
notarized, acknowledged, verified, or made under oath, the
requirement shall be satisfied with respect to an electronic non-
testamentary estate planning document if an individual authorized t o
perform the notarizat ion, acknowledgment, verification, or oath
attaches or logically associates the individual ’s electronic
signature on the document toge ther with all other information
required to be included under law.
SECTION 10. NEW LAW A new sectio n of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 910 of Title 84, unless there is
created a duplication in numb ering, reads as follows:
A. If the laws of this state base the validity of a non-
testamentary estate planning document on whether it is signed,
witnessed, or attested by another individual, the signature,
witnessing, or attestation of that individual may be electronic.
B. For the purposes of this subsection, “electronic presence”
means that two or more individuals in different locations are able
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to communicate in real time to the same extent as if the individuals
were physically present in the same l ocation. If the laws of this
state base the validity of a non -testamentary estate planning
document on whether it is signed, wi tnessed, or attested by another
individual in the presence of the individual signing the document,
the presence requirement shall be satisfied if the individuals are
in each other’s electronic presence.
SECTION 11. NEW LAW A new section of l aw to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 911 of Title 84, unless there is
created a duplication in numb ering, reads as follo ws:
A. Except as provided in subsection B of this section, if the
laws of this state require an electronic non-testamentary estate
planning document to be r etained, transmitted, copied, or filed, the
requirement is satisfied by retaining, transmitting, co pying, or
filing an electronic recor d that:
1. Accurately reflects the information in the document after it
was first generated in final form as an electro nic record or under
Section 12 of this act; and
2. Remains accessible to the extent required by the other law.
B. A requirement under subsection A of this section to retain a
record does not apply to information the s ole purpose of which is to
enable the record to be sent, communicated, or received.
C. A person may satisfy the requirements of subsection A of
this section by using the services of anoth er person.
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D. If the laws of this state require a non-testamentary estate
planning document to be pr esented or retained in its original form
or provides consequences if a non -testamentary estate planning
document is not presented or retained in its origin al form, an
electronic record retained in accordance with subsection A of this
section satisfies such requirement.
E. The provisions of this section do not preclude a
governmental agency from specifying r equirements for the retention
of a record subject t o the agency’s jurisdiction in addition to t he
requirements provided in this section. For the purposes of this
section, “governmental agency” means an executive, legislative, or
judicial agency, departmen t, board, commission, authority,
institution, or instrumentality of the federal government or of a
state or of a county , municipality, or other politic al subdivision
of a state.
SECTION 12. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 912 of Title 84, unless there is
created a duplication in numb ering, reads as foll ows:
An individual may cr eate a certified paper copy of an electronic
non-testamentary estate planning document by affirming under penalt y
of perjury that the paper copy is a complete and accurate copy of
the document.
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SECTION 13. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 913 of Title 84, unless there is
created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:
Evidence relating to an electronic non-testamentary estate
planning document or an electron ic signature on the docume nt may not
be excluded in a proceeding solely because such evidence is in
electronic form.
SECTION 14. NEW LAW A new section of law to be c odified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 914 of Title 84, unless there is
created a duplication in numb ering, reads as follows:
In applying and construing this uniform act, a court shall
consider the promotion of uniformity of the law among jurisdiction s
that enact it.
SECTION 15. NEW LAW A new se ction of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 915 of Title 84, unless there is
created a duplication in numb ering, reads as follows:
This act modifies, limits, or superse des the Electronic
Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act, 1 5 U.S.C. Section
7001 et seq., as amended, but does not modify, limit, or supersede
15 U.S.C. Section 7001(c), or au thorize electronic de livery of any
of the notices described in 15 U.S.C. Section 7003(b).
SECTION 16. NEW LAW A new s ection of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 916 of Title 84, unless there is
created a duplication in numb ering, reads as follows:
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This act shall apply to an electronic non-testamentary estate
planning document created, signed, generat ed, sent, communicated,
received, or stored prior to, on, or after the effective date of
this act.
SECTION 17. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 917 of Title 84, unless there is
created a duplication in n umbering, reads as follows:
If a provision of this act or its application to a person or
circumstance is held invalid, t he invalidity does not affect another
provision or application that can be given effect without the
invalid provision.
SECTION 18. This act shall become effective November 1, 2023.
59-1-227 TEK 1/17/2023 1:00:49 PM