"Legal instrument" is a
legal term of art[?] that is used for any written legal document such as a
property deed[?], a
will, an
Act of Parliament or a
law passed by a competent
legislative body in
municipal[?] (domestic) or
international law. Many legal instruments were written
under seal by affixing a wax or paper seal to the document in evidence of the legal exchange value of the document (formerly used as a form of
consideration in
contract law). Legal instruments have undergone a process of
dematerialisation[?] as it is now possible to sign
digital documents[?], have them
date and time stamped[?], or otherwise verified through various schemes of
encryption and
document authentication.