---
type: "Bill"
title: "AN ACT RELATING TO COURTS AND CIVIL PROCEDURE--PROCEDURE GENERALLY -- CAUSES OF ACTION (Permits a signed release to be transmitted to the party responsible for paying the settlement or their attorney by electronic means.)"
description: "AN ACT RELATING TO COURTS AND CIVIL PROCEDURE--PROCEDURE GENERALLY -- CAUSES OF ACTION (Permits a signed release to be transmitted to the party responsible for paying the settlement or their attorney by electronic means.)"
jurisdiction: "us/states/ri"
legislature: "Rhode Island General Assembly"
session: "2023"
identifier: "HB 5438"
citation: "Rhode Island HB 5438 (2023)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: ["Attorney", "Civil Procedure", "Computer Technology", "Courts", "Fees"]
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: ["Knight"]
version_count: 1
action_count: 16
vote_count: 1
first_action: "2023-02-08"
last_action: "2023-06-20"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/abde55d7-d711-4391-b95b-b45ed2214a8e"
source_url: "https://status.rilegislature.gov/"
source_hash: "97d1916139181a4209a5a4c75bfef5e67c9801ef0a0af6bab38cff6dff6a7102"
vintage: "2026-07-01"
source_snapshot: "https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump"
retrieved_at: "2026-07-06"
confidence: "reported"
tags: ["legislation", "bill", "us-ri"]
---

# Rhode Island HB 5438 (2023) — AN ACT RELATING TO COURTS AND CIVIL PROCEDURE--PROCEDURE GENERALLY -- CAUSES OF ACTION (Permits a signed release to be transmitted to the party responsible for paying the settlement or their attorney by electronic means.)

## Version chain

The bill's text revisions, in order — the diff chain from filing to enrollment.

1. **5438** (committee substitute) — [source](http://webserver.rilegislature.gov/BillText/BillText23/HouseText23/H5438.pdf)

## Votes

- PASSAGE — **72–0** (pass) · lower

## Sponsors

- Knight — primary (person)

## Timeline

The legislative action history — every referral, reading, and vote.

- **2023-02-08** 02/08/2023 Introduced, referred to House Judiciary `introduction, referral-committee`
- **2023-02-24** 02/24/2023 Scheduled for hearing and/or consideration (03/02/2023)
- **2023-03-02** 03/02/2023 Committee recommended measure be held for further study `committee-failure`
- **2023-03-31** 03/31/2023 Scheduled for consideration (04/04/2023)
- **2023-04-04** 04/04/2023 Committee recommends passage `committee-passage-favorable`
- **2023-04-14** 04/14/2023 Placed on House Calendar (04/20/2023) `reading-3`
- **2023-04-20** 04/20/2023 House read and passed `passage`
- **2023-06-06** 06/06/2023 Referred to Senate Judiciary `referral-committee`
- **2023-06-06** 06/06/2023 Scheduled for hearing and/or consideration (06/08/2023)
- **2023-06-08** 06/08/2023 Committee recommended measure be held for further study `committee-failure`
- **2023-06-10** 06/10/2023 Scheduled for consideration (06/13/2023)
- **2023-06-13** 06/13/2023 Committee recommends passage in concurrence `committee-passage-favorable`
- **2023-06-15** 06/15/2023 Placed on the Senate Consent Calendar (06/15/2023) `reading-3`
- **2023-06-15** 06/15/2023 Senate passed in concurrence `passage`
- **2023-06-15** 06/15/2023 Transmitted to Governor `executive-receipt`
- **2023-06-20** 06/20/2023 Signed by Governor `executive-signature`

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/abde55d7-d711-4391-b95b-b45ed2214a8e`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official Rhode Island legislature records).