New Guideline Unless you know the person No ID No Notary

A notary must always be completely satisfied with the identity of the person whose signature is being notarized. A notary is not obligated to notarize a person’s signature without being sure that the person is who he or she claims to be. Always check identification and be satisfied that the identification is valid. Never accept the word of a third party as being sufficient for identification to justify notarizing a person’s signature

Essentials For VA Notaries

IMPORTANT GUIDELINES FOR VIRGINIA NOTARIES The first and most important duty of a Virginia Notary Public is to become and continue to be thoroughly familiar with everything contained in The Virginia Handbook for Notaries. This is the operator’s manual for exercising the powers and responsibilities of the position. No one should perform any duty as notary without having an understanding of what this publication contains. Performing any duty of a notary in a manner that is contrary to the contents of the Handbook may result in the revocation of the notary’s commission and criminal prosecution resulting in a fine and jail time. Here are some very important points to remember that are based on frequently asked questions or complaints regarding service as a Virginia Notary Public: □ A notary is a public official appointed by the Governor. Even though a notary may hold that position to serve his or her employer, no employer or supervisor can impose requirements pertaining to a notary that are contrary to Virginia’s laws and regulations pertaining to notaries. □ A notary must always be completely satisfied with the identity of the person whose signature is being notarized. A notary is not obligated to notarize a person’s signature without being sure that the person is who he or she claims to be. Always check identification and be satisfied that the identification is valid. Never accept the word of a third party as being sufficient for identification to justify notarizing a person’s signature. □ A notary cannot notarize his or her own signature, the signature of his or her spouse or a document in which the notary or the notary’s spouse may benefit. For example, a notary cannot notarize a will in which a notary or the notary’s spouse is to be a beneficiary. □ A notary cannot certify birth, marriage, death certificates (copies or originals.) □ A notary is not authorized to perform marriages or any act that constitutes the practice of law. □ The term “acknowledged before me” means that the person signing the document has satisfied the notary as to be his or her identity and has actually signed the document while the notary was watching him or her doing it. □ A notary is not required to charge a fee for his or her services, but if a fee is charged, it cannot be more than $5.00 for each notarial act. □ A Virginia notary may notarize a document to be filed and used outside of Virginia if it is signed and notarized in Virginia. □ The notary must notify the Secretary of the Commonwealth’s Office of any changes to the information provided on their application during the course of their commission. □ A Virginia notary’s seal must be photographically reproducible and contain the name of the notary exactly as it appears on the notary’s commission, the words “Notary Public” and “Commonwealth of Virginia.” Stamps/seals must be ordered through an outside vendor. Information on stamp/seal must be accurate. The Office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth does not sell or make notary stamps/seals. □ There are seven (7) items required for the notary to state on each document being notarized: 1. The name of the county or independent city in which the document is signed 2. The date the document is signed. 3. The notarial statement – what is being notarized (i.e. a signature, a true copy of an original, or an oath) 4. The notary’s signature 5. The date that the notary’s commission expires (month, day, year) 6. Notary registration number 7. Photographically reproducible notary seal/stamp □ Every effort should be made to have complete notarization on the same page as the signature(s) being notarized. If notarization is on a separate page from signature(s), the notarial statement must include the name of each person whose signature is being notarized. □ If a notary has any questions or concerns regarding any act of a Notary Public, he or she should contact the Notary Section of the Office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth BEFORE performing that act. □ If a notary violates any law or regulation governing notaries public, the Secretary of the Commonwealth may revoke his or her commission. A notary may be criminally prosecuted for willful misconduct. It is a felony to act as a notary without having a valid commission and doing so may result in imprisonment for each offense. □ A notary’s commission may be renewed every fourth year by filing a new application with the Secretary of the Commonwealth’s Office. □ If there are any changes to the notary laws the information will be available by July 1 of every year under Official Documents on the notary website at www.commonwealth.virginia.gov or by calling the Secretary of the Commonwealth’s Office. □ We recommend creating a Notary Management account on our website. The Notary Management account will allow you to check the status of notary applications, update your contact information, and, if eligible, renew online. The log-on and creation link can be found under Official Documents on the Secretary of the Commonwealth’s website at www.commonwealth.virginia.gov R

What to do when you have lost notary items

From the VA Notary Handbook: LOST OR STOLEN NOTARY INFORMATION (§ 47.1-14) A (traditional or electronic) notary must immediately report, in writing, any lost or stolen electronic notary items to the Secretary of the Commonwealth’s office. If the items are believed to have been stolen, the electronic notary must also inform the appropriate law-enforcement agency.

Polite Invitation to testify in Court but no compensation

A VA notary received a polite invitation to testify in Arlington County Circuit Court on a probate case. Since the notary was not qualified as expert witness and not under subpoena, other than $22 for travel no compensation for 5 hours spent in Court was paid. The recommendation of the notary are 1) no pay no go 2) bring a lawyer and the VA notary handbook anytime you go to Court to avoid being abused by lawyers who are totally clueless on notary matters-the judge will not protect you from Rule 11 or 12 violations and 3) VA law needs to be amended to give the notary a specified per diem fee of $100. If the party requesting the notary's presence is indigent, the Court needs to be required to pay the notary's appearance fee. Another reference to bring to Court is Van Alstyne's Notary Public Encyclopedia available from the Notary Law Institute.

German Pension documents and the VA Notary

Germany requires that pensioners living in VA and other states to submit a notarized statement annually that the pensioner is still alive. The document calls for the pensioner to sign on the front of the document and the notary sign and stamp on the back.This does not meet VA standards of notarization. It is strongly recommenced that the stamp a complete VA acknowledgement and notary seal on the front and back but only charge for one notarization. Germany requires the pensioner to send a copy of identification presented to the notary. This copy is not notarized as a exact copy and is the sole responsibility of the pensioner to copy. If the pensioner is disabled, there is a provision in the document for a person to sign on behalf of pensioner but a medical certificate must be submitted. The instructions are in German,French, and English.

New Adoption Law for Contested Adoption

The following is the current addition to the existing VA Code section 63.2-1203, under number 4(C). C. In an adoption proceeding where the consent of a birth parent is required, but the petition for adoption alleges that the birth parent is withholding consent to the adoption, the court shall provide written notice to the birth parent of his right to be represented by counsel prior to any hearing or decision on the petition. Upon request, the court shall appoint counsel for any such birth parent if such parent has been determined to be indigent by the court pursuant to § 19.2-159. If you are approached my a parent who is desiring to give up custody for adoption to an out of state adoption, the notary may need to be cautious. The notary may be dealing with a contested adoption where indigent parent is required to have a court appointed lawyer. If the notary suspects a contested adoption, the needs to call the police and child protective services so the competent Juvenile and Domestic Court can sort out the case. Adoptions within VA should be done only State official is present. If parent wishes to execute a waiver of notice on an adoption, this is another matter. After going through the steps of notarization, the notary can execute a jurat. Waiver of Notice is also used in divorce cases. In all cases, the waiver of notice states the party wants no further notice or communications on the case.

Non Party Witness or Defendaant

A person who is neither a defendant or plaintiff is a non party witness when called to a Federal Court case and enjoys some protection under Rule 12 from excessive behavior from Counsel of Defendant or Plaintiff. A notary was given a subpoena for a deposition where the Plaintiff was suing several defendants for ten million dollars over an adoption case where the child was taken from VA to Utah. According to the notary the original subpoena was overreaching. However, the Defendant's attorney got to see some of the overreaching material but got only to keep notary journal entries regarding the adoption case.All the attorneys got to see the 2008 VA notary Handbook since the notarization occurred in early 2009. The case never went to trial since the parties entered in to a sealed agreement. It is strongly recommended that a notary under subpoena bring a lawyer to any deposition since you have no idea if you are dealing with dolphins with law degree or sharks or pit bulls with law degrees. Furthermore, the notary can be intimidated if the testimony could result a substantial prison sentence for one or more of the parties after the civil procedure has been resolved. All VA notaries must remember, the former mayor of Detroit went to Federal and State Prison because he lied to a Michigan notary. VA notaries are required to fully co-operate with all criminal investigators.A sealed civil settlement does not preclude a criminal investigation. When a VA notary is served with bill of complaint alleging errors, the notary should notify the insurance company immediately to obtain counsel. This is another reason to carry insurance and maintain a notary journal even though VA does require notaries to have one.