Standards Adopted for Accepting Electronic Recordings

Michigan Electronic Recording Commission Takes Action

September 26, 2013

 The Michigan Electronic Records Standards were adopted by the Michigan Electronic Recording Commission on Aug. 27 with an effective date of Jan. 1, 2014. This action fulfills the requirements of Public Act 123 of 2010, also known as the Uniform Real Property Electronic Recording Act, to adopt standards to implement the Act.

Designed to address concerns by county registers of deeds about their legal authority to accept electronic records of real estate transactions, the Act provides that an electronic signature satisfies a requirement that a document be signed for the purpose of recording and that an electronic document satisfies any requirement that a document be an original for the purpose of recording.

The Standards address eight areas which include Data and Document Standards which adopt those of the Property Records Industry Association, Electronic Signatures and Authentication and Security.

Formed by Public Act 123 of 2010, the Electronic Recording Commission consists of eight members charged with adopting standards to implement the Act. Seven are appointed by the governor including four county registers of deeds, a banker, a land title professional, and an attorney specializing in real property matters. The eighth nonvoting member is the director of the Department of Technology, Management & Budget.

The Standards as well as additional information may be found on the Commission’s website.