Notarization of Electronic Transactions: Digital Technologies

Abstract

The relevance of the study. The article considers the legal possibility of notaries making (certifying) electronic transactions using digital technologies. A sufficient level of guarantees of the rights of the parties to electronic transactions is achieved only with the participation of a notary by notarizing documents that acquire the highest evidentiary value. This allows ensuring and protecting the rights of persons in civil circulation as much as possible and avoiding entering into a transaction with defects of will or content. With the development of legislation, electronic document management, the modern legal system, and the legal culture of the population, appeal to the notary as a body through which the state ensures the protection of personal and property rights and freedoms of citizens becomes popular. Various forms of improvement make the notary more accessible to the population of the country.Purpose of the article. The purpose of the article is to study the legal nature and features of electronic transactions certified by notaries, as well as the guarantees of legality and responsibility of the notary for conducting electronic transactions, which certainly increases the security of the parties to the transaction and simplifies (in terms of time and number of documents required for the collection) the transaction itself. The article examines the principles of notarization of electronic transactions in the aspect of a general theoretical and legal understanding of the nature and essence of notarial actions on the example of the legislation of the Russian Federation, as well as some European countries.Methods. The leading method of studying the problem was the deductive method, which allowed studying the legal nature, role, and place of the institute of notarization of electronic transactions in the aspect of digitalization of modern society and the state. System analysis, historical method, induction method, etc. were used as well.Results. The article concludes that the registration authority is not responsible for the content of the transaction (including those made electronically), in contrast to the notary, who checks the electronic transaction, its legality, admissibility, and correctness in the preparation of all necessary documents and signs (certifies) the documents with his/her qualified electronic signature. Both systems (notarization of electronic transactions and state registration of rights) are designed to ensure and protect the legitimate interests and rights of citizens in the field of property relations. The notary, with the introduction of the possibility of electronic transactions, also provides the most convenient, reliable, and fast interaction with the state bodies of participants in civil turnover.