The bottom line: parties should consider backing up their “John Hancock” by notarizing their important documents. However, a few states, including New Jersey, have issued public statements expressly banning webcam notarization and still require signers to physically appear before a Notary. Recently, Virginia has taken eNotarization a step further and authorized webcam notarization, which means that the document is being notarized electronically and the signer does not need to physically appear before the Notary.
Nevertheless, the same basic elements of traditional paper notarization remain, including specifically, the requirement for the signer to physically appear before the Notary. Depending on the state, the information in a Notary’s seal may be placed on the electronic document as a graphic image. Some states have authorized eNotarization, which is essentially the same as a paper notarization except that the document being notarized is in digital form, and the Notary certifies with an electronic signature. The Future of NotarizationĪs with most areas of the law, notarization is attempting to catch up with technology. The strict regulation of Notaries provides additional recourse for the aggrieved party, as the Notary could be held responsible for damages a party suffers as a direct result of the failure of the Notary to perform his or her responsibilities. A Notary is generally charged with the responsibility of going through a document to make sure that there are no alterations or blank spaces in the document prior to the notarization. For example, a Notary could be liable for damages or criminal penalties if he or she notarizes a signature which was not provided in the Notary’s presence or which the Notary knows is not authentic. In most cases, a Notary can be held personally liable for his or her intentional or negligent acts or misconduct during the notarization process. For specifics on New Jersey law, see the New Jersey Notary Public Manual, and for New York’s law, see the New York Notary Public Law. How are Notaries Regulated?Įach state individually regulates and governs the conduct of Notaries. Thus, if there is ever a dispute as to the authenticity of a signature, significant time and money can be saved by avoiding testimony – which also eliminates the potential of a dispute over witness credibility (i.e., he said, she said). Ultimately, this means that the signers do not need to testify in court to verify the authenticity of their signatures. For more information, please see our previous blog post regarding the enforceability of duplicate contracts. A Notary can also certify a copy of a document as being an authentic copy of the original. In most jurisdictions, notarized documents are self-authenticating.
Does a promissory note need to be notarized verification#
Why is Notarization Important?Ī primary reason to have a document notarized is to deter fraud by providing an additional layer of verification that the document was signed by the individual whose name appears. Finally, the document must be signed in the presence of the Notary. Generally speaking, the party whose signature is being notarized must identify himself/herself, provide valid personal identification (i.e., a driver’s license), attest that the contents of the document are true, and that the provisions of the document will take effect exactly as drafted. A notarization, or a notarial act, is the process whereby a Notary assures and documents that: (1) the signer of the document appeared before the Notary, (2) the Notary identified the signer as the individual whose signature appears, and (3) the signer provided his or her signature willingly and was not coerced or under duress. Fortunately, a quick, simple and inexpensive solution to prevent this problem is to have the document notarized by a notary public (“Notary”). Indeed, our office once handled a two-week arbitration based solely on the issue of authentication of a signature on a contract. All too often, documents such as contracts, wills or promissory notes, are contested based on allegations of fraudulent or forged signatures.
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