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=== Revised Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act ===
As a response to the lack of both federal and state laws concerning digital inheritance, in 2015 the [[Uniform Law Commission]] released the ''Revised Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act'' (RUFADAA).<ref>Sy, E. (2016). The Revised Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act: Has the law caught up with technology? ''Touro Law Review, 32''(3), 647-678. https://heinonline.org/HOL/P?h=hein.journals/touro32&i=665</ref> This piece of legislation seeks to balance the interests of digital estate administrators and the privacy concerns of internet account users and service providers. The RUFADAA stipulates that a personal representative (estate administrator, [[fiduciary]], or [[Conservatorship|conservator]]) of an online account user has the right to access the user's electronic communications if the user had consented to this disclosure either via an online tool (such as Facebook's Legacy Contact feature or Google's Inactive Account Manager) or in a will. If neither of these forms of user consent are on file, an online service provider's terms of service agreement remains in effect and the provider has the right to deny a fiduciary access to electronic communications.<ref>Ronderos, J. (2017). Is access enough: Addressing inheritability of digital assets using the three-tier system under the Revised Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act. ''Transactions: The Tennessee Journal of Business Law, 18''(3), 1031-1066. https://heinonline.org/HOL/P?h=hein.journals/transac18&i=1058</ref> As of 2021, 47 states have enacted the RUFADAA.<ref>Uniform Law Commission. (2021, November 30). ''Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act, revised''. Retrieved November 30, 2021, from https://www.uniformlaws.org/committees/community-home?CommunityKey=f7237fc4-74c2-4728-81c6-b39a91ecdf22</ref>
== Benefits of digital inheritance ==
A successfully implemented digital inheritance process has both personal and societal benefits which highlight the concept's importance. In the personal realm, family members' ability to access or receive copies of their deceased loved one's online content, such as social media profiles, blogs, and emails, has real sentimental value and can aid in the grieving process just as much as a person's physical objects. Additionally, any digital content that produced economic value for the original user may continue to do so if passed on to the user's heir(s).<ref name=":23">Borden, M. (2014). Covering your digital assets: Why the stored communications act stands in the way of digital inheritance. ''Ohio State Law Journal, 75''(2)'','' 405-446. https://heinonline.org/HOL/P?h=hein.journals/ohslj75&i=421</ref>
Digital inheritance also has beneficial implications for the preservation of society's digital heritage. The passing on of digital estates necessitates that the content of digital assets be preserved either as copies or in its original functioning environment for an heir to receive. Digital inheritance therefore encourages proper [[digital preservation]] practices rather than allowing the content of deceased users to be abandoned and/or eventually deleted. Future generations will then be able to have a better understanding of this society's digital landscape.<ref name=":23" />
==Issues==
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