Topics of Interest Archives - Page 7 of 10 - Notary Blog - Signing Tips, Marketing Tips, General Notary Advice - 123notary.com
123Notary

Notary Blog – Signing Tips, Marketing Tips, General Notary Advice – 123notary.com Control Panel

June 30, 2012

Can a notary public act as a witness?

Filed under: Witnessing — Tags: , , , — admin @ 12:13 pm

Can a notary public act as a witness? 

We already have a very thorough blog entry entitled:
 
Can a notary be a witness?
 
That contains all pertinent details regarding notary witness requirements and procedures.  To sum it up, a notary can act as a witness in any state in their capacity as an individual.   However, in Delaware, and Washington State, and perhaps a few other states, a notary can do witnessing as an official notary act, and charge an official fee set by the state for their services.
 
Is it better to hire a notary to be a witness?
Since notaries work exclusively with signers, signatures, documents, foms, certificates, etc., many people feel that notaries are better equipt to handle the (not so vigorous) responsibilities associated with being a witness.  Additionally, notaries have been screened by their state and are more likely to be honest upstanding citizens — or at least that is what many of us like to think.  The reality is that some notaries have no idea what they are doing, while others are very particular about witnessing, and documenting information in conjunction with witnessing. 
 
Why would it matter who you picked as a witness?
If someone witnesses a document signing or a Will signing, it doesn’t matter much who they are provided they are at least 18 years of age.  On the other hand, if the witness ever needs to be contacted after the fact, it is good if the witness has lived in the same place for a long time so you know where to reach them.  If your witness works for the circus or lives in a caravan and moves around a lot, you might never see them again. Having a witness who is a notary might help if they provide some extra documentation for you. Additionally, a mobile notary supposedly knows how to show up at the appointed place at the appointed time and might be more reliable with logistics.

You might also like:

Types of witnesses in the Notary profession
http://blog.123notary.com/?p=5664

Credible Witnesses from A to Z
http://blog.123notary.com/?p=452

Share
>

June 22, 2012

Notary Public Oath of Office Information

Filed under: Become a Notary — Tags: , , , , — admin @ 12:56 pm

Notary Public Oath of Office Information 

Each state has a different procedure for becoming a notary.  But, it is common for states to require a newly commissioned notary public to purchase a bond and file it with the county recorder. When the notary comes to the recorder’s office to file their bond, it is also common for them to have to take an Oath of Office, and file their oath at the county recorder’s office as well.  California requires notaries to file two completed copies of their oath with the county recorder. Remember not to sign the Oath documentation until the clerk at the county clerk tells you to!
 
The Oath of Office
Generally, the Oath will be a piece of paper with a quick statement that you swear to. You will need to raise your right hand and swear or affirm under oath that you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, and you will have to agree to the terms in the document.  You need to sign in the presence of the clerk, and then the clerk will affix their stamp to the Oath paperwork.
 
Verbiage for the Notary Oath of Office
Here is some sample wording from Michigan’s Department of State:
 
Do you solemnly swear that you will support the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of this State, and that you will discharge the duties of the office of Notary Public in and for said County to the best of your ability?

You might also like:

2019 Oath of Office for Notaries FAQ
http://blog.123notary.com/?p=21427

When are you required by law to do Oaths?
http://blog.123notary.com/?p=21017

Has anyone failed the notary public exam?
http://blog.123notary.com/?p=1999

Vampire notaries: 24 hour service
http://blog.123notary.com/?p=4094

Share
>

June 5, 2012

How to find a bilingual notary public

Filed under: Find a Notary — Tags: , , , , , , — admin @ 12:40 pm

How to find a bilingual notary public

How to find a bilingual notary public Many states prohibit a notary public from providing notary services to someone who they can not communicate DIRECTLY with. This means no translators allowed. Therefor, if you have a signer who does not speak English, you will need a bilingual notary public to notarize their signature.

Notaries who advertise as bilingual.
Many notaries advertise themselves as bilingual. Some don’t even specify which two languages that they speak that makes them bilingual. Most people would guess that the pair of languages would be Spanish and English. You will find native speakers of Spanish, children of Latin American immigrants, and home-grown Anglos who will claim to be bilingual — but not all claims were created equal.

Some people are proficient in both languages enough to be a certified translator. Some can speak, but can’t write. Many can communicate on a simple level in their second language as well. The notaries you have to watch out for are the ones who know only a few words of Spanish and promote themselves as bilingual notaries to get a few extra jobs, when they clearly are causing more trouble than anything else. Test your bilingual notary out on the phone If a notary claims to be bilingual, half of them have a translator in the back room who is not always there and not always available. That is a semi-fraudulent claim of bilingualness if you ask me! Others can not function in the language if your question goes beyond, “How are you, and what is your name?”. Talk to your bilingual notary on the phone and see how capable they really are.

Test them before you book them in your calendar. How do I find a bilingual notary public? 123notary.com has a wide selection of bilingual notaries speaking every language from Amharic, Arabic, Armenian, Chinese, Farsi, French, German, Hebrew, Hindi, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Russian, (American) Sign Language, Spanish, Tagalog, Vietnamese, and Zulu (not necessarily in that order). Just do a search, and on the upper right hand side of the page you can filter your search by typing in the name of the language. There are actually speakers of many more languages than mentioned above, but those are the common ones. We even had one or two notaries who spoke Chaldean, Tigrean, and Twi among other languages. Don’t use the term Notario Publico The Spanish term Notario Publico is very different from the American position of Notary Public. Notaries are forbidden from using the Spanish term in their advertising in most states. American notaries are forbidden from giving legal advice and are of a much more common position than a Latin American Notario which is a position almost as high as an attorney.

You might also like:

Notarizing your foreign language document
http://blog.123notary.com/?p=2768

Notary Procedure for Affidavit of Support Documents
http://blog.123notary.com/?p=1421

Bilingual Notaries, how often are they needed?
http://blog.123notary.com/?p=238

Is it better to be bilingual or speak Spanish?
http://blog.123notary.com/?p=19264

Share
>

May 23, 2012

Where do credible witnesses sign the notary journal book

Filed under: Credible Witnesses,Journals — Tags: , , , — admin @ 12:26 pm

Where do credible witnesses sign the notary journal (register)(book)? 

Some states require notaries to carry an official journal of notarial acts while others recommend it, but don’t require it. Some states call the journal of notarial acts a journal, while others call it a registry or a book.  The main thing to remember, is that a good notary journal must be bound and sequential. Each entry must be in chronological order.  Different journal manufacturers make journals differently.  I recommend getting one with a thumbprint section and space to write notes. Most states don’t require notaries to take thumbprints, but for your security as a notary, you need thumbprints to keep you out of court if anyone questions whether the signer was a fraud or imposter.  Thumbprints are a better proof of identity than any other means.
 
The credible witness signs the notary journal in the additional notes section!
They do NOT sign in the signature area!!!  Signature areas are for the document signer, and only one document signer can sign in a particular journal entry’s signature area. If there are two signers, then make two journal entries!  The credible witness must sign in the notes section because there is blank space there.  You should document the credible witness’s identification, phone, and address to be thorough.
 
The notary needs to administer an Oath to the credible witness where the credible witness must swear to the identity of the signer. Make sure the credible witness really knows the signer well, otherwise they are not really qualified to identify someone that they know only as “Ralph”, and don’t even know his middle or last name!

You might also like:

Notary Public Journal
http://blog.123notary.com/?p=21409

Everything you need to know about notary journals
http://blog.123notary.com/?p=70

Index of posts about journals
http://blog.123notary.com/?p=20272

Share
>

April 26, 2012

Can a notary also witness documents being signed?

Filed under: Popular on Twitter 2012,Technical & Legal,Witnessing — Tags: , , , , — admin @ 11:44 am

Q. Can a notary also witness documents being signed?
A.  Any individual over the age of 18 can be a witness to a document signing or Will signing.
 
Q.  Can a notary charge for acting as a witness?
A.  If acting as a witness is an official notary act in the state where the notary is commissioned or acting, then they can charge whatever their state’s maximum appointed fee is.  In all other states where witnessing is not an official notary act, then the notary can charge whatever the client will agree to.
 
Q.  Should I hire a notary to act as a witness?
A.  You can if you like, but unless you need some special documentation done, that only a notary can perform, there is no real need to have a notary around.
 
Q. Can you recommend some more detailed reading materials about this topic?
A.  Yes, please read:  Can a notary be a witness?

Q. When is a Notary required to witness signatures?
A. Jurat Notarizations require the Notary to have the signer sign before them. A handful of states require the Notary to witness Acknowledged signatures as well.

Tweets:
(1) Any individual over 18 can witness documents being signed, including a Notary Public.
(2) Can a notary charge for acting as a witness? Yes, but your state might have a maximum charge.

You might also like:

Can a Notary act as a witness?
http://blog.123notary.com/?p=21359

Credible witnesses from A to Z
http://blog.123notary.com/?p=452

Fraud and Forgery related to the notary profession
http://blog.123notary.com/?p=2294

Share
>

April 23, 2012

Sending loose certificates is illegal

Filed under: Ninja Theme Articles,Notary Acts & Certificates — Tags: , , , , , , , , — admin @ 1:00 am

Sending loose certificates is illegal! 

People who work at Title companies are notorious for breaking the law in so many ways.  Here are some common types of fraud that happen at Title companies daily:
(1) Many will deliberately and shamelessly forge initials when the borrower forgets to initial.  I’m not sure how bad of a crime this is, but I recommend against any type of forgery — no matter what! 
(2) Most will unstaple documents that have been stapled which makes the completed certificate which is attached (a legal requirement), no longer attached (illegal) and hence a loose certificate (gulp). I have had multiple Title companies complain to me that they didn’t like the industrial staples I used since they were so hard to unstaple.  They don’t have a legal right to unstaple those notarized documents because the certificate must stay attached.  Part of the problem with unattaching certificates, is that they could get reattached to some OTHER document creating confusion, havoc, and hence having a document notarized without having it presented to a notary public and going through the procedure and journal entry.
(3) Many will ask a notary to send them a loose certificate if a document needs to be notarized again for some reason. Sometimes the seal was smudgy, or perhaps they needed to replace the document and get a new certificate for the new document with a new date.  If you are a “loose notary” who has a loose interpretation of notary law in your state, you might be breaking the law!
 
It all starts out with a pad of loose certificates!
You start out with our pad of loose acknowledgment certificates and jurat certificates.  Any serious notary will have this type of pad on hand as if their life depends on it.  Sure, the certificates are loose now, but that is okay, since they haven’t been filled out or stamped yet!  When you notarize a signature(s) on a document(s), you have the signer(s) signer the instrument, and then you have them sign your official journal of notarial acts.  Then, you fill out the certificate wording embedded in the document, or if that boiler plate wording isn’t there, you can add a certificate form which has the identical, or hopefully very similar boiler plate wording.  You fill out the form, cross you s’s, and dot your t’s, etc.  The minute you sign the certificate, and affix your official notary seal, then you may NOT let that certificate out of your site until it is ATTACHED to the corresponding document. It is illegal to unattach a certificate from a document, and very unkosher to unattach the staple for a notarized multipage document. What are your intentions?  Are you going to swap pages after the fact?  I can smell fraud a mile away!
 
What should you the notary do when asked to send a loose certificate?
It’s easy.  Someone at a Title company says they need a new Jurat certificate for the Affidavit of Domicile you notarized for them a week ago otherwise their loan won’t go through (pressure technique).  They want you to mail the loose certificate to them!  Tell them:
 
“No problem, just send me the document and the original certificate — I’ll shred the old certificate and add a new one… You can not have two certificates for the same document. The signer already signed the journal for this particular transaction and doesn’t need to sign it again for a certificate which is to be dated the same date they signed the journal.”
 
And they will say:

“Oh, come on, why does this have to be so difficult. That takes extra time and money.  Why can’t you just (break the law) and send us what we want (and risk your commission and risk being sent to jail or being fined perhaps more than $1000) for our convenience?”
 
And then you should say:

“If you need notaries to routinely break the law for your pleasure, you should ask your notaries some pre-screening questions.  Ask them if they are willing to break the law on a whim (your whim) and risk their commission and perhaps some jail time for your convenience. Ask them if they mind risking going to jail to save you from having to wait an additional 24 hours for a loose certificate… if they say ‘sure’, then they are the notary for you!”
 
My concluding advice
Don’t break the law for these rascals. They are not worth it.  You probably won’t get in trouble, but as a notary public, your position in society is to preserve integrity, and to safeguard transactions by making sure that the signer really signed the corresponding document in question.  If certificates get switched on documents due to fraud, or because you didn’t identify the document carefully enough on the certificate, then you are a liability to society and shouldn’t be a notary public. 
 
As a notary, you should be very sensitive to the fact that if you are notarizing multiple documents for a particular signer, those documents could get mixed up, and the signer could pull a fast one and reattach notary certificates from a document you really did notarize, to another similarly named document that you did not notarize. 
 
Multi-page documents can be taken apart and pages switched.  Title companies ROUTINELY take apart documents as a matter of standard procedure, and if you don’t emboss every page of everything you notarize, it would be easy for someone to replace page 5 with another similar looking page 5.  Assume that people are dishonest and shady, so that you can protect the virtue and integrity of your work. Document everything to a tee, and don’t give in to pressure to do illegal notary acts even if it means losing a client. You don’t want that client anyway in the long run — trust me!

You might also like:

10 tight points on loose certificates
http://blog.123notary.com/?p=15449

Signing agent best practices
http://blog.123notary.com/?p=4315

Notary Certificates, Notary Wording & Notary Verbiage
http://blog.123notary.com/?p=1834

Make your own certificate forms
http://blog.123notary.com/?p=1759

Share
>

April 13, 2012

Do notary journals need to be kept under lock and key?

Filed under: Journals — Tags: , , , , , , — admin @ 12:52 am

Do notary journals need to be kept under lock and key?
 
Notary rules differ from state to state. Many states don’t even require a notary to have a journal, or notary seal.  However, California requires the use of both a notary journal and seal, and both must be kept under lock and key.  However, there is a catch.  The currently used journal must be locked up and access must exclusive to the notary public that it belongs to.  Co-workers and bosses can not look at the journal without the notary being present.  USED journals that have been filled out to their completion can be stored at the notary’s home, office, etc., but don’t need to be locked up. 
 
When a notary’s commission is over, they must return all journals (California notary journals) (current and completed) to the county clerk’s office or whatever agency the notary division in their state appoints for them.
 
California notary journal rules might not apply to other states, but you should be careful with your journal and seal in any case as it contains really important information. Additionally your California notary seal, or seal from another state could be used for fraud, so you need to prevent that from happening if possible.

You might also like:

Notary Public 101 — Journals
This is a more comprehensive guide to understanding using Notary journals although we do have supplemental reading as well.
http://blog.123notary.com/?p=19511

Index of posts about journals
http://blog.123notary.com/?p=20272

A detective seizes a journal and complains about a blurry thumbprint
http://blog.123notary.com/?p=22237

Share
>

April 1, 2012

Do personal loans require a witness?

Filed under: Witnessing — Tags: , , , — admin @ 12:08 pm

Do personal loans require a witness?
 
Most personal loans are signed in the presence of a notary.  Refinance loan signings are commonly refered to as witness signings.  The notary is the witness in this case.  Technically, the notary needs to witness the signings of Affidavits in the loan as a matter of notary law.  Each loan is different, but there could be a Signature Affidavit, Occupancy Affidavit, and perhaps other Affidavits too.
 
What about a non-notary witness?
I have heard of personal loans or refinances requiring an outside witness, however, this only is required in particular states. Additionally, from time to time, if a signer doesn’t have their identification, a credible witness might be brought in.
 
You might also like:
 
Can a notary be a witness?
 
Can a notary be a witness to a will?

If you can’t find a witness to sign

Can a notary sign an out of state Quit Claim Deed?

Share
>

March 27, 2012

Notary Boiler Plate Wording

Filed under: Notary Acts & Certificates — Tags: , , , , , , , — admin @ 4:46 am

Notary Boiler-Plate Wording
 
Notary wording and notary verbiage differs from state to state.  Ohio might have one type of official notary boiler-plate wording on acknowledgment certificates while California notary wording or Florida notary wording might be completely different. 
 
If you are a notary…
To find out what official notary verbiage is in your state for particular notary acts, you should ideally have acknowledgment certificate pads, as well as jurat certificate pads.
 
If you are not a notary, but need to have a document notarized…
The official notary wording from your state MIGHT be embedded in the signature section of the document already.  If not, an experienced notary in your state MIGHT (should) have official pads for common notary acts with the notary verbiage on it.
 
Is it important to have the right boiler plate wording?
Some states require exact wording, while most states require certain key pieces of information to be included in the wording.  The important facts generally are the date of the signing, the name of the notary, the name of the signer, the fact that the signer acknowledges signing the document, the fact the the signer appeared before the notary and proved his/her identity, the signature of the notary (also confusingly called a seal), and the official seal of the notary (stamp).
 
How to fill out notary certificate wording?
Leave this to the notary.  Any notary is supposed to know how to fill out the certificate wording. If you are a single man signing a document and the notary verbiage says he/her/their, then the notary is supposed to know to cross out the her and their, although many are so uneducated that they don’t cross out anything. 
 
Notary personally known wording
Many states no longer allow a notary to use personal knowledge of a signer to identify them. However, if your state allows you to identify a signer based on the signer being personally known to you, then you can indicate that on the notary wording and in your journal (if your state requires a journal).
 
Resource materials
 
California Notary Wording / California Notary Verbiage
 
Colorado Notary Wording / Colorado Acknowledgment Wording
 
Florida Notary Wording / Florida Notary Verbiage
 
Illinois Notary Wording / Illinois Notary Verbiage
 
Michigan Notary Wording / Michigan Notary Verbiage
 
Texas Notary Wording / Texas Notary Verbiage

Share
>

March 7, 2012

If you can’t find a witness to sign…

Filed under: Witnessing — Tags: , , , — admin @ 3:21 am

If you can’t find a witness to sign a document… 

Certain documents such as Wills generally require the signatures of witnesses.  It is better if the witness knows the signer, however, sometimes, you just have to get a living breathing human being who is 18 years of age or older.
 
A notary can be a witness. Some states allow notaries to witness as an official Notary act.  But, I have not heard of any state prohibiting a notary from acting as a witness in their capacity as an individual.
 
You can always try to grab a neighbor or a stranger who will be willing to act as a witness.
 
It is good to document the witness’s identification, printed name, phone number and address just in case.  You might need to find that person after the fact, or prove that they really witnessed a real signature.
 
Sometimes, a notary might be instructed to notarize the signature of a witness on a Will.  Although notaries are generally discouraged from notarizing the signatures of the main signer on a will, I have never heard of a notary being discouraged from notarizing the signature of a witness on a Will.

You might also like:

Can a Notary be a witness?
http://blog.123notary.com/?p=21359

Can a notary witness a will or notarize one?
http://blog.123notary.com/?p=1525

Where do credible witnesses sign the journal?
http://blog.123notary.com/?p=2508

Share
>
« Newer Posts — Older Posts »