diff --git a/app/components/SignatureCard/index.tsx b/app/components/SignatureCard/index.tsx
index fd6f67e2a..03d8cf0f9 100644
--- a/app/components/SignatureCard/index.tsx
+++ b/app/components/SignatureCard/index.tsx
@@ -45,19 +45,25 @@ const SignatureCard = ({
   const { userDetails } = useSecurity();
 
   const [userSignature, setUserSignature] = useState<UserType>();
-  const [role, setRole] = useState('');
+  const [role, setRole] = useState<string>();
 
   useEffect(() => {
+    if (type) { // need to do these separately because signatures may be null
+      if (type === 'author') {
+        setRole('author');
+      } else if (type === 'reviewer') {
+        setRole('reviewer');
+      } else if (type === 'creator') {
+        setRole('creator');
+      }
+    }
     if (signatures && type) {
       if (type === 'author') {
         setUserSignature(signatures.authorSignature);
-        setRole('author');
       } else if (type === 'reviewer') {
         setUserSignature(signatures.reviewerSignature);
-        setRole('reviewer');
       } else if (type === 'creator') {
         setUserSignature(signatures.creatorSignature);
-        setRole('bioinformatician');
       }
     }
   }, [signatures, type, setRole]);
@@ -65,12 +71,18 @@ const SignatureCard = ({
   const handleSign = useCallback(async () => {
     let newReport = null;
 
+    let reportRole = role;
     // Assign user
     try {
+      if (role === 'creator') {
+        reportRole = 'bioinformatician';
+      } else if (role === 'author') {
+        // Hardcode analyst role here because report does not accept 'author'
+        reportRole = 'analyst';
+      }
       newReport = await api.post(
         `/reports/${report.ident}/user`,
-        // Hardcode analyst role here because report does not accept 'author'
-        { user: userDetails.ident, role: 'analyst' },
+        { user: userDetails.ident, role: reportRole },
         {},
       ).request();
     } catch (e) {
@@ -79,7 +91,6 @@ const SignatureCard = ({
         snackbar.error('Error assigning user to report: ', e.message);
       }
     }
-
     // Do signature
     try {
       const newSignature = await api.put(
diff --git a/package-lock.json b/package-lock.json
index bccb28a1c..971ec2fed 100644
--- a/package-lock.json
+++ b/package-lock.json
@@ -1,12 +1,12 @@
 {
   "name": "ipr-client",
-  "version": "6.31.0",
+  "version": "6.31.1",
   "lockfileVersion": 2,
   "requires": true,
   "packages": {
     "": {
       "name": "ipr-client",
-      "version": "6.31.0",
+      "version": "6.31.1",
       "license": "GPL-3.0",
       "dependencies": {
         "@ag-grid-community/client-side-row-model": "~25.3.0",
diff --git a/package.json b/package.json
index e1c323164..57ea05772 100644
--- a/package.json
+++ b/package.json
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 {
   "private": true,
   "name": "ipr-client",
-  "version": "6.31.0",
+  "version": "6.31.1",
   "keywords": [],
   "license": "GPL-3.0",
   "sideEffects": false,