The internet is singlehandedly the most ‘disruptive’ innovation’ of our time – not only have online technologies led by the tremendous growth of this virtual network shaped how we communicate, they have also brought countless changes to the dynamics of various industries and it is certainly not surprising to witness these alterations creep into legal and judicial processes. As more and more elements of our lives continue to become ‘electronic’ or ‘digitized’, we can predict this shift to impact OKC process server services as well as notaries in OKC.
The Online Future of Notarization
Have you ever wondered how almost every aspect of legal systems is becoming computerized on a global scale? From the complete digitization of all U.S case laws, introduction of litigation analytics, e-filing systems, and widespread use of virtual communication tools in law firms and rise of legal start-ups, it seems that the entire industry is moving on a singular path. Unfortunately, when it comes to document verification through notarization, notaries in OKC seem to be stuck in the middle ages. Well, it is rather understandable that the physical concept of notarization has been championed across the world due to safeguard the safety of sensitive documents but online notarization can achieve just that in addition with greater efficiency.
Remote online notarization service is a gateway into the future without having to compromise the authenticity of documents because it integrates safety and security features such as video authentication which is already being practiced to complete various transactions. As more and more people shift towards online notarization due to the factors related to accessibility and convenience which are topped with the benefits of digital signature technology, signer identity is becoming even more secured to bar criminals from tampering with documents.
The Imminent Extinction of Process Servers
With all these exciting changes happening in the field, one thing is for sure, as e-signatures and initials continue to hold legal existence people could eventually get served with documents when opening Facebook and making an ATM transaction and this idea is surely not far-fetched!
In fact, social media has already been made use of execute the service of process in countries such as the UK, Canada, New Zealand and Australia and it is only a matter of time before OKC process servers are subjected to getting replaced. Even though, the instances in which this framework has been used to serve papers are only a few at this point, it is specifically helpful when the subject is actively evading authorities or has moved abroad.
In this highly connected world, when a subject tries to evade authorities and eliminate all traces of their existence, the internet still remembers everything. It is no wonder that a popular case linked to this argument grabbed national attention when a federal magistrate judge based in San Francisco approved the use of Twitter to summon an individual who was indicted with providing monetary support to ISIS.
While notaries in OKC can continue to champion the benefits of the traditional method over online notarization, OKC process servers can also forward arguments that are associated with the pitfalls of using social media to fulfil their roles however, analysts claim that these drawbacks are addressable to a huge extent. For instance, websites and platforms can play a vital role in verifying whether a social media account is valid and indeed belongs to the party in question by checking its age while, relevant individuals can be questioned on whether they have communicated with the party on the same social media account to make sure that it actually belongs to them.
Moreover, if the account is ‘active’ based on recent posts, pictures and status updates then the court can certainly check the likelihood of the party in questioning actually receiving the notice or documents which they have been sent.
As is the case with other technologies, it takes time for the late majority to accept it as a viable option in comparison with early adopters who are more open towards integrating it into their day to day operations. As the legal arena eventually came around to accepting email and text messaging evidence as valid proofs that could be used in the court of law, it is expected that digitized process server services and online notarization will eventually gain the same level of acceptance. When this change ultimately becomes fully accepted in the legal arena, technology and internet will essentially make process servers and notaries obsolete.
