Dating documents to prevent fraud TB Rosh Hashanah 2

We shouldn't be surprised that the first Mishnah of Rosh Hashanah delineates four different "New Years." We too have different days to mark different beginnings. We have January 1 as the New Year. For many companies and businesses the new fiscal year begins July 1 or August 1. The new school year begins sometime in early September. The first New Year mention in the Mishnah is "On the first of Nisan is the New Year for kings; it is from this date that the years of a king’s rule are counted. And the first of Nisan is also the New Year for the order of the Festivals, as it determines which is considered the first Festival of the year and which is the last." (Sefaria.org translation)

A standardized dating system was absolutely needed for documents. "The New Year for kings; with regard to what halakha is it mentioned in the mishna? Why is it necessary to set a specific date to count the years of a king’s rule, rather than counting them from the day that he ascends to the throne? Rav Ḥisda said: It is for determining the validity of documents.

"It was the common practice to date documents in accordance with the years of the king’s rule; therefore, it was important that these years begin at a fixed time, so that one knows whether a particular document was antedated or postdated, as we learned in a mishna: Antedated promissory notes, i.e., promissory notes dated prior to the date on which the loan actually took place, are invalid because a loan document creates a lien on the borrower’s property. By dating the document earlier than the loan itself, the lender has a fraudulent mortgage on the property, which can be used against any future purchaser. Therefore, the Sages ordained that an antedated promissory note does not establish a lien, even from the true date of the loan. But postdated promissory notes bearing a date that is later than the date when the loan actually took place are valid, as postdating the note presents no opportunity for defrauding a purchaser." (Sefaria.org translation)

Not only long contracts needed appropriate dating to prevent fraud, documents gifting something, wills, as well is business transactions also required correct dating. Rashi comments that although antedated promissory notes are invalid as documents, the loan could be viewed as a verbal agreement. In this case witnesses would need to come forth and testify about the validity of the loan so that it could be collected.