Pennsylvania RUFADAA Law
Verified against the official 20 Pa.C.S. ch. 39 text:
How 20 Pa.C.S. Chapter 39 lets Pennsylvania personal representatives, agents, trustees, and guardians of the estate reach a user's online accounts, including the register-of-wills shortcut.
Quick answer
Pennsylvania governs fiduciary access to digital assets through 20 Pa.C.S. Chapter 39, added by Act 72 of 2020 and in effect since January 19, 2021. A personal representative proves authority with a certified copy of the letters, and obtains message content only with the user's consent. For a catalogue of communications, letters issued by the register of wills can stand in for a court finding when the representative files a sworn affidavit with the register (§3908). Under §3904, an online-tool direction overrides a contrary will, trust, or power of attorney, and custodians must comply within 60 days (§3916).
Pennsylvania digital asset law at a glance
- Statute
- 20 Pa.C.S. Chapter 39, Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets (§§3901–3918)
- Enacted
- Act 72 of 2020, signed July 23, 2020; effective January 19, 2021
- Applies to
- Wills, powers of attorney, guardian-of-the-estate proceedings, and trusts before, on, or after the effective date, for users who reside or resided in Pennsylvania (§3903)
- Fiduciaries covered
- Personal representatives, guardians of the estate, agents (defined by cross-reference to §5601(f)), and trustees
- Online-tool priority
- §3904
- Custodian deadline
- 60 days after receiving the required information (§3916)
- Proof of a personal representative's authority
- A certified copy of the letters (§§3907, 3908)
- Pennsylvania-only rule
- Register-issued letters plus a sworn affidavit can serve as the court finding for a catalogue request (§3908(b))
What makes Pennsylvania’s law different
The register of wills can supply the court finding
Under §3908(b), for a catalogue of communications, the issuance of letters testamentary or of administration by the register has the same force as a court finding if the personal representative files an affidavit with the register, sworn under 18 Pa.C.S. §4904, setting out the account details and the need for disclosure, and gives the custodian a copy showing it was filed. The affidavit can be an averment in the §3153 petition, the §3154 affidavit, or a supplement sworn before the register (§3908(c)). Unless rules of court or a court order say otherwise, no separate court order is needed for that step.
Letters are the proof, with no small-estate alternative
Both §3907 (content) and §3908 (other assets) ask for a certified copy of the letters. Unlike California, Texas, New York, or Virginia, Chapter 39 does not list a small-estate affidavit or a general court order as a substitute proof of appointment.
Guardians of the estate, not guardians
Pennsylvania defines a “guardian of the estate” as a person appointed by a court to manage the estate of a living individual, including a limited guardian of the estate. A “protected person” includes someone for whom an application for a guardian of the estate is merely pending. Under §3914 the court may grant access after an opportunity for a hearing, and the custodian then discloses the catalogue and non-content assets on a certified court order.
Agents come from Pennsylvania's power-of-attorney chapter
Chapter 39 defines agent by cross-reference to 20 Pa.C.S. §5601(f), in Chapter 56 on powers of attorney, so the scope of an agent's authority is read through Pennsylvania's own power-of-attorney statute.
What a Pennsylvania personal representative must give the custodian
After a death, 20 Pa.C.S. ch. 39 separates two requests: the content of the user’s emails and messages, and everything else, including a catalogue of who the user corresponded with and when. Each has its own document list.
To obtain message content (§3907)
- A written request for disclosure, in physical or electronic form
- A certified copy of the death certificate
- A certified copy of the letters
- Unless the user gave direction through an online tool, a copy of the will, trust, power of attorney, or other record showing the user consented to disclosure of content
- If the custodian asks: an account identifier, evidence linking the account to the user, or a court finding on the account, federal-law compliance, consent, and necessity for estate administration
To obtain the catalogue and other digital assets (§3908)
- A written request, a certified death certificate, and a certified copy of the letters
- If the custodian asks: an account identifier, evidence linking the account to the user, an affidavit that disclosure is reasonably necessary for estate administration, or a court finding
- The register's issuance of letters, with the representative's filed affidavit, can count as that court finding (§3908(b))
- No consent is needed for the catalogue unless the user prohibited disclosure or the court directs otherwise
Agents, trustees, and guardians in Pennsylvania
Agent under a power of attorney (§§3909–3910)
Message content requires a power of attorney that expressly grants authority over the content of the principal's electronic communications, plus the agent's certification under penalty of perjury that it is in effect (§3909). The catalogue and other assets require specific authority over digital assets or general authority to act on the principal's behalf (§3910).
Trustee (§§3911–3913)
A trustee that is the original user receives the account's digital assets held in trust. A trustee that is not the original user must show the trust and, for message content, the settlor's consent, and certify that the trust exists and the trustee is currently acting.
Guardian of the estate (§3914)
The catalogue and non-content assets only, after an opportunity for a hearing, on a certified copy of the court order giving the guardian authority over the protected person's digital assets. A guardian of the estate with general authority over assets may ask the custodian to suspend or terminate the account for good cause, with a certified court order.
Can an online account setting override a Pennsylvania will?
Yes, within limits. 20 Pa.C.S. §3904 lets a user direct a custodian, through the custodian’s own online tool, to disclose or withhold some or all digital assets. If the tool lets the user change or delete that direction at any time, it overrides a contrary instruction in a will, trust, power of attorney, or other record. Where the user made no such direction, the estate documents control, and either kind of direction overrides a conflicting terms-of-service clause.
How 20 Pa.C.S. ch. 39 is organized
| Section | Subject |
|---|---|
| §3901 | Short title |
| §3902 | Definitions |
| §3903 | Applicability |
| §3904 | User direction for disclosure of digital assets |
| §3905 | Terms-of-service agreement |
| §3906 | Procedure for disclosing digital assets |
| §3907 | Content of electronic communications of deceased user |
| §3908 | Other digital assets of deceased user |
| §3909 | Content of electronic communications of principal |
| §3910 | Other digital assets of principal |
| §3911 | Digital assets held in trust when trustee is original user |
| §3912 | Content held in trust when trustee is not original user |
| §3913 | Other digital assets held in trust when trustee is not original user |
| §3914 | Digital assets of a guardian of the estate |
| §3915 | Fiduciary duty and authority |
| §3916 | Custodian compliance and immunity |
| §3917 | Uniformity of application and construction |
| §3918 | Relation to E-SIGN Act |
Pennsylvania RUFADAA questions
Chapter 39 of Title 20 was added by Act 72 of 2020, signed July 23, 2020, and has been in effect since January 19, 2021.
A written request, a certified death certificate, and a certified copy of the letters. For message content, also a record showing the user's consent unless the user used an online tool (§3907).
Yes, for a catalogue request. Under §3908(b), letters issued by the register can have the same force as a court finding if the personal representative files a sworn affidavit with the register and gives the custodian a copy showing it was filed.
Only if the user consented, through an online tool or in a will, trust, power of attorney, or other record, or a court directs disclosure (§3907). The catalogue of correspondents and dates is available without that consent (§3908).
Sixty days after receiving the required information. If it does not comply, the fiduciary may apply to the court for an order, which must find that compliance does not violate 18 U.S.C. §2702 (§3916).
Yes, under §3904, if the tool lets the user modify or delete the direction at all times.
Concepts that apply in every state
Some ideas work the same way under every RUFADAA-style statute: what counts as a digital asset, why the content of private messages is treated differently from a catalogue, what a custodian may hand over, and what these laws do not do (they never guarantee passwords). They are explained once in the RUFADAA overview.
Primary source
20 Pa.C.S. Chapter 39, Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets (§§3901–3918)
Online-tool provision: 20 Pa.C.S. §3904.
Where Vesperly fits
20 Pa.C.S. ch. 39 decides who may ask a custodian for what. Vesperly handles the practical side: keeping your records encrypted, verifying your executor and the death certificate, and releasing what you chose once those conditions are met. It does not replace the statute, your estate plan, or legal advice.
Other state guides
Educational information only. Not legal advice. Laws, provider procedures, federal requirements, and individual circumstances can change the result in a specific matter. Consult qualified counsel for legal advice.