3.Execution in counterpart is the process whereby each of the parties to a document signs (“executes”) a separate physical copy of it and all then exchange the resultant copies so that each ends up with a set of each of the copies signed by the other parties. The aim is to create a legally enforceable document rather than having to arrange for all parties to meet together for each to sign the same document. The Act provides a clear framework by which a document executed in counterpart will be effective under Scots law. The Act also creates a mechanism to enable documents created on paper (referred to in the Act as “traditional documents”) to be regarded as delivered by electronic means for legal purposes such as concluding a contract. The Act implements the legislative recommendations in the Scottish Law Commission (SLC) report Review of Contract Law – Report on Formation of Contract: Execution in Counterpart(1), which was published in April 2013 (“the SLC Report”).
Legal Writings (Counterparts and Delivery) (Scotland) Act 2015
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- 3 Execution in counterpart is the process whereby each of the parties to a document signs (“executes”) a separate physical copy of it and all then exchange the resultant copies so that each ends up with a set of each of the copies signed by the other parties. The aim is to create a legally enforceable document rather than having to arrange for all parties to meet together for each to sign the same document. The Act provides a clear framework by which a document executed in counterpart will be effective under Scots law. The Act also creates a mechanism to enable documents created on paper (referred to in the Act as “traditional documents”) to be regarded as delivered by electronic means for legal purposes such as concluding a contract. The Act implements the legislative recommendations in the Scottish Law Commission (SLC) report Review of Contract Law – Report on Formation of Contract: Execution in Counterpart, which was published in April 2013 (“the SLC Report”).
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Text created by the Scottish Government to explain what the Act sets out to achieve and to make the Act accessible to readers who are not legally qualified. Explanatory Notes were introduced in 1999 and accompany all Acts of the Scottish Parliament except those which result from Budget Bills.
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