Legal Question in Business Law in New York

I signed a legal document with a pen that wasn't writing smoothly (leaving a lot of absent spaces where there should have been letters), I grabbed a different pen and resigned over top of my previous signature (to fill it in). I was told by DMV that because I did I voided the document (vehicle title) therefore, I had to pay $20 to send for a new one before I could transfer ownership. Is copying over your signature an automatic void of a legal document?


Asked on 12/29/11, 11:15 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Nancy Delain Delain Law Office, PLLC

Unfortunately, the DMV, along with most state and federal agencies, looks at re-signing over an original signature as defacement and potential fraud.

In the contract world, re-signing is not so sternly regarded; as long as you admit to signing the contract, the re-signing is not usually much of a problem. However, a registered document like a car title or deed is a public record, and those folks get pretty snitty about re-signed documents.

Unfortunately, you'll need to pay the $20 to the DMV to get the new title; be sure to test your pen out before you sign this one!

THIS POST CONTAINS GENERAL INFORMATION AND IS INTENDED FOR ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES ONLY. IT DOES NOT CONSTITUTE LEGAL ADVICE, NOR DOES IT CREATE ANY ATTORNEY-CLIENT RELATIONSHIP. FOR LEGAL ADVICE ON YOUR PARTICULAR MATTER, CONSULT YOUR ATTORNEY.

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Answered on 1/04/12, 11:39 am


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