Do You Still Have to Sign Legal Documents in Cursive?
Recently I had a client who was born and raised in a county adjoining Knox County. She was in her twenties and had received her high school diploma. When it came time to sign documents she asked if it was okay if she printed her name because where she grew up, they did not teach them how to write in cursive.
I was a little surprised, and I did not know the answer, but since printing her name was the only option, that is what we went with and what was filed with court. Thankfully her case ended successfully, and no one raised any issues related to my client printing her name instead of signing it in cursive.
To my knowledge there is no Tennessee law that states that legal documents must be signed in cursive, however, Tennessee Code Annotated section 49-6-1034 states that cursive writing shall be taught in all public schools so students can create readable documents through legible cursive handwriting.
I am not sure where the breakdown occurred regarding my client’s schooling, or she simply did not pay attention during the cursive writing classes, but I was glad that her lack of cursive writing ability did not impede her case being completed.
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