Section 2.2 - Scope of Responsibilities
A notary public is a person of integrity appointed by the Secretary of State to serve the public as an impartial and unbiased witness by identifying persons who come before the notary. The most common function of the notary is to prevent fraud by attesting that a person actually signed a document. To do so, the notary will take acknowledgments of deeds and other instruments or administer oaths.
Notarization is the act of witnessing by the notary public in accordance with California state law. Notarization involves signed documents and requires the notary to verify the signer's identity. When the proper steps of notarization are followed, notarization of a document will help detect and deter fraud. However, notarization does not prove the truthfulness of statements contained in a document nor legalize or validate a document.
The 5 Basic Steps to most notarizations are:
Examine the Document
Verify Completeness
A notary public may not notarize a document which is incomplete. If presented with a document for notarization, which the notary public knows from his or her experience to be incomplete or is obviously incomplete, the notary public must refuse to notarize. (Government Code section 8205)Check the Notarial Certificate
First, look at the venue: State of California, County of ___________. This language should reflect the location where the document is being notarized. If it is incorrect, change the language and initial the change BEFORE notarizing.
Second, check the date. If an incorrect date has been filled in, strike through that date, write in the correct date, and initial the change BEFORE notarizing. The correct date is the actual date of notarization. Under no circumstance should you pre-date (also called "back-dating") or post-date a notarial certificate, nor should you ever provide any party with a signed or stamped notarial certificate unless it is directly attached to a document you have personally notarized, was completed at the time of the notarization, and describes the notarized document.*
* Most loose notarial certificates, such as the California All-Purpose Certificate of Acknowledgment, available from Notary Rotary, contain room to record additional information about the document to which they are attached: document title/purpose, number of pages, date, and signer information. Although completion of the Optional Information section is not required by law, it could prevent fraudulent removal and reattachment of the certificate to an unauthorized document and could also prove useful to persons relying on the notarized document. In addition, when shopping for loose certificates, you should be aware any security features they might have. Notary Rotary certificates, for example, are printed in two colors and utilize a microprint border, adding to the security of your certificate. Several other products are simply black-and-white certificate copies with no security features whatsoever.
Third, look for the key words "acknowledged" or "sworn/affirmed" to determine if you are to take an acknowledgment or administer an oath. If the document does not have a notarial certificate, the signer must tell you which notarial act the document requires. As a notary, you should not choose the type of notarial act. At the signer's direction, you may write, type or stamp the appropriate certificate on the document, or you may attach a loose notarial certificate.
Establishment of identity will be covered more in subsequent units.
Personal Appearance - Not all notarizations require the document to be signed in front of the notary public (e.g. acknowledgment or copy certification of a Power of Attorney document), but personal appearance by the individual requesting notarization is ALWAYS required at the time of notarization.
Determine Willingness - While not a requirement of California law, making sure the signer is not being forced to sign the document may help to deter fraud. If you suspect coercion, it is best to refuse to notarize.
Determine Awareness - You are not responsible for the contents of the document. However, while not required by California law, you should be satisfied that the signer is competent and has read and understands the significance of the document in order to help deter fraud. Do not notarize if you have reasonable belief that the person signing the document is not aware of its significance. If the signer has unanswered questions about the document or its effect, you should refer him or her to an attorney or other relevant party and not notarize. If the signer is blind or illiterate, you should read the document to him or her. See Section 2.5 for information on documents written in foreign languages.
Establish Identity - Verification of a signer’s identity is the most important function you must perform in your role as a California notary public. You must have satisfactory evidence that a person is the individual whose true signature is on the document. The signer must present one of the following forms of satisfactory evidence:Proper identification,
A credible witness with identification, personally known to you, or
Two credible witnesses whose identities can be established using satisfactory evidence.
Make the Journal Entry
Record all information pertinent to the notarization in your notary journal, which will serve as your permanent record of the notarial event. The information that must be recorded in your journal is detailed in Unit 3, Section 3.6. In addition, you should:Complete the entry in ink,
Enter the information before the notarial certificate has been completed to prevent the signer from leaving before all data has been recorded, and
Record all notarizations, even the requests for notarization you have refused.
Take the Acknowledgment or Administer the Oath
In Step 1, you determined the type of notarial act to perform and in Step 2, you screened the signer. Now that you've completed your journal entry, you must either take the acknowledgment or administer the oath. These acts are covered in Unit 4. Unit 5 contains information on protests and copy certifications, which are also notarial acts, but are far less common in most settings.Complete the Notarial Certificate.
Double-check to ensure the acknowledgment certificate or jurat contain the notarial wording required by law. Complete them by writing or typing the subscriber name, the date and any other necessary information. If a loose certificate is used, complete the Optional Information section if available. Finally, sign your name and legibly affix your notary seal.
Notarial certificates are covered in more detail in later units.
On occasion, the Secretary of State may request information on the notarial events you have participated in. If you should receive a request via certified mail or any other means of physical delivery that provides a receipt from the Secretary of State's office for information relating to official acts you have performed as a notary, you must respond within 30 days. (Government Code section 8205(b)(2))