1. What Signet is
Signet is Meridian's built-in electronic signature. Firms use it to have clients and staff sign documents such as retainer agreements, consents, authorizations, and letters. Signet is included at no extra cost and is the default signing method; a firm may instead connect its own third-party e-signature provider where it prefers.
2. Legal effect
Electronic signatures are recognized under Canada's Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA) and equivalent provincial legislation, and under comparable laws in other jurisdictions (for example, the U.S. ESIGN Act and UETA). A document signed with Signet is intended to be as legally binding as a handwritten signature, provided the signer intended to sign and consented to do so electronically.
3. Consent & intent to sign
Before signing, the signer enters their full legal name, provides a signature (drawn, typed, or uploaded), and affirmatively agrees that they intend to sign electronically and that their electronic signature is legally binding. No one is signed without this explicit, recorded consent.
4. Tamper-evidence
When a document is signed, Signet computes a cryptographic fingerprint (SHA-256) of the finished PDF and binds it with a keyed seal. Any later change to the document — even a single character — changes the fingerprint, so alterations are detectable. The signed document is stored encrypted and access-controlled.
5. Certificate of Completion
Every signed document carries an appended Certificate of Completion recording the signer's name, the signing method, timestamps, IP address, an audit trail, the document fingerprint, and a unique Verification ID.
6. Independent verification
Anyone holding a signed document can confirm its authenticity at app.meridianlegal.ca/verify by entering the Verification ID, or by uploading the PDF to check it against the sealed fingerprint. A document that has been altered will not match.
7. Audit trail
For each signature request, Signet records the key events — sent, viewed, and signed — with timestamps and IP addresses. These records are retained with the signed document so the signing can be reconstructed if ever questioned.
8. Identity
Signet ties each signature to the firm's existing relationship with the signer and records the IP address and time of signing. The firm remains responsible for confirming the identity of the person it asks to sign. Higher-assurance identity checks (such as email or one-time-code verification) may be offered as the feature evolves.
9. Scope limits
Signet is used for the firm's own documents. It is not used to apply signatures to certified Government of Canada (IRCC) forms, which carry their signatures within the form as required by IRCC. Nothing in this policy is legal advice about the validity of any particular signature in a particular matter.
10. Retention
Signed documents and their certificates are retained in line with the Storage & Data Retention Policy and the Privacy Policy.