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222 Part III: Electronic signatures and international contracts III. Written form not required by law The German Electronic Signatures Act establishes the mechanism for the recognition of foreign signatures based on certificates (Section 23). The statute does not address the equivalence of other types of foreign electronic signatures. Therefore, when the parties use other types of signatures, such as a simple electronic signature, the statute does not establish how this type of foreign electronic signatures is to be recognized. C. US law governing the form I. Statute of Frauds Under US law the requirement of a writing is encompassed in the legal provisions known as the Statute of Frauds.735 The Statute of Frauds originated in an English Act named “An Act for the Prevention of Frauds and Prejudices” which dates from 1677. The name of the act reveals its goal: to prevent deceit in contracts.736 The underlying idea is that the lack of a signed writing of the parties´ agreement results in fraudulent conducts.737 Therefore, certain contracts require a writing for the contract to be enforceable. Each US state has its own Statute of Frauds; however, normally five types of contracts fall under the Statute of Frauds: the contract of an executor or administrator to answer for a duty of his or her decedent; a contract to answer for the duty of another; a contract made upon consideration of marriage; a contract for the sale of an interest in land, and a contract that is not to be performed within...