When the Electronic Will Has Been in Custodial Care
The cleanest path to a certified paper original is when the electronic will has remained under qualified custodian control from the moment it was executed. In that case, the custodian provides an affidavit covering six specific points.
On the creation of a certified paper original of an electronic will, if the electronic will has always been in the custody of a qualified custodian, the qualified custodian shall state in an affidavit all of the following: 1. That the qualified custodian is eligible to act as a qualified custodian in this state... 5. That the certified paper original is a true, correct and complete tangible manifestation of the electronic will.
A.R.S. § 14-2523(A)The affidavit confirms the custodian's eligibility, that the electronic record was created at the time of execution, that it has been under exclusive custodial control with no alterations, who has had custody, that the paper version accurately represents the electronic original, and that all supporting records remain under the custodian's control.
When the Electronic Will Was Not Always Under Custodial Care
If the electronic will was not continuously held by a qualified custodian, the certification process requires more documentation. Both the person who discovered the electronic will and the person who converted it to paper must provide separate affidavits.
These affidavits must address when the will was created, when and how it was discovered, who has had access to it, how it was stored, what safeguards were in place to prevent alterations, whether the electronic record has been changed since execution, and that the paper version is a true and complete copy.
This additional scrutiny makes sense. Without the chain-of-custody protections a qualified custodian provides, the court needs more evidence to trust that the document has not been tampered with. For families who want to avoid these complications, designating and maintaining a qualified custodian from the start is the cleaner path.
