And it’s not just lawyers who lack knowledge about what is required of Notaries Public; it’s also many notaries themselves. According to Aronson, only 16 states require people wishing to become notaries to learn about the profession first.
“If it’s difficult for notaries public to learn about notary public duties, it’s that much harder for lawyers,” says Aronson.
What Does a Notary Do, Anyway?
While it’s not the world’s oldest profession, the concept of the Notary Public dates back to Ancient Rome, more than 2,000 years ago. Throughout the ages, the Notary Public has always been considered an honorable title, and they have been part of every Royal Court.
The profession is built on the twin pillars of Trust and Integrity, with the notary being charged with protecting the citizenry by acting as a sworn, impartial officer of the state. They are to ensure all elements of the notarization are performed accurately and in compliance with state laws.
While that may sound simple enough, there is so much more to know. According to Roger Rill, a full-time Notary Public and president of the Ohio Society of Notaries, additional duties of a notary public include “personal appearances by the signer, providing identification, acknowledging the document content (or being sworn to its truthfulness), and affixing their signatures freely, thus deterring fraud. Notarized document signatures are an essential aspect of the legal system and everyday commerce.”
The need for impartiality is a key element of serving as a notary, says Bill Anderson, Vice President of Government Affairs for the National Notary Association.
“Notaries are impartial witnesses appointed by the state to the execution of important documents in law, life and commerce," Anderson says. "They verify that the signing parties are who they claim to be, and therefore help in deterring forgeries and frauds involving signed documents.”
Moreover, a Notary’s certificate of a notarial act is granted a presumption of genuineness in a court of law.
According to Anderson, laws require certain documents to be acknowledged before a Notary, such as real property deeds, mortgages, powers of attorney (in many states), estate documents and more.
The Glaring Knowledge Gap
While he couldn’t provide exact statistics, Anderson says that by way of anecdotal evidence, “very few (lawyers) know the rules for notaries,” which he says is because “virtually no law (school) in the U.S. requires students to learn about Notary law.
Aronson agrees. “Law schools, in general, do not educate law students about the duties and responsibilities of a Notary Public.” And law students aren’t the only ones not learning about what it means to be a Notary. “Most lawyers don’t get educated on it, either, so it’s a no-win situation,” he says.
Moreover, Anderson contends lawyers incorrectly believe “the crucial impartial witnessing notaries provide are merely a ‘formality’ or ‘technicality’ that can be dispensed with. To prove how wrong this assumption is, Anderson notes there have been countless attorney-notaries sanctioned by state Supreme Courts for notarial misconduct.
Change Is On The Horizon
Laws governing notary publics vary state to state. And, in Ohio, for example, each of its 88 counties has its own rules for registering as a Notary, requirements to become a Notary, and more.
However, that’s all about to change, in good measure due to Rill’s tireless efforts over the past ten years to secure legislative support for overhauling Ohio’s antiquated notary public laws.
His organization is a co-author of a bill currently under review in the Ohio Senate known as the Ohio Notary Modernization Act.
If passed as written, the legislation will “strengthen Ohio’s notary commissioning process” for all of the state’s notaries, says Rill. Under current Ohio law, when a lawyer passes the bar exam, they may simply check a box to indicate they would also like to be a Notary Public.
No proof of familiarity with the procedures or laws governing notaries is required, no additional educational requirements are imposed nor does their commission ever expire.
Under the new law, all newly appointed attorneys will undergo mandatory notary training prior to gaining a notarial commission. “This will help ensure that all new notaries will become more competent and confident in meeting the signing challenges of the 21st Century,” says Rill.
For his part, Anderson does not believe lawyers should be extended a notarial commission without proving an understanding of the duties and requirements of the position. In fact, he says there is some evidence to suggest that as a best practice, attorneys should not be able to become notaries at all.
“However, due to the fact that many, if not most, private practitioners have single office law firms, this may be impractical,” he says.
Tami Kamin Meyer is an Ohio attorney and writer.