Arizona Real Estate Notebook

by Phoenix attorney Christopher A. Combs, partner with Combs Law Group, P.C.

Question: The purchase contract for the new home requires the signature of the buyer for the acceptance of the public report. On the signature line, however, the buyer printed his name. Is the printing of the buyer’s name sufficient “signing” for acceptance of the public report?

Answer: Probably. The general rule is that a written document such as the public report is “signed” by any known mode of impressing a name on paper, for example, writing, printing, or lithographing, provided that the same is done with the intention of signing. Bishop v. Norell, 88 Ariz. 148, 353 P.2d 1022 (1960). For example, in English medieval days the marking of a “X” on a rock was deemed to be a signature. Therefore, if the buyer printed his name with the intention for the printed name to be his signature, then the buyer has signed accepting the public report.