Define: Notary Public

Quick Summary of Notary Public

A notary public (also called a notary, or public notary) is an official who is given the authority to administer oaths and various other declarations. Additionally, a notary public can authenticate documents for public or private transactions. When people speak of having something notarized, they are referring to the actions of a notary public. To become a notary public, one must have relevant experience or specific training, for example as a lawyer. Though a notary public may be a lawyer, in most states of the US, this is not required. Most countries require foreign documents to be signed by a notary public before they can have legal effect within their borders. Documents certified by notary publics are sealed or stamped.

A notary public is an officer who can administer oaths and statutory declarations, witness and authenticate documents and perform certain other acts varying from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. Generally speaking, a notary public in the United States of America has powers that are far more limited than the role of a civil law notary in the rest of the world, with the exception of Louisiana. For the purposes of authentication, most countries require commercial or personal documents that originate from or are signed in another country to be notarized before they can be used, officially recorded, or have any legal effect.

In some countries and states, notaries are required to undergo specific training in the performance of their duties. Many must also first serve as apprentices before being commissioned or licenced to practice their profession. Even licenced lawyers (such as barristers or solicitors) must go through additional specialised notarial training and apprenticeship, in many countries, before being allowed to practice the profession of a notary. A notary public commissioned in the United States of America is not an attorney-at-law unless also admitted to the bar. (Although some countries consider the profession of a civil law notary, itself, to be the practice of law.). Many even have institutes of higher education issuing degrees in the field. In the United Kingdom, for example, a notary public can perform any task a solicitor or other lawyer can perform as part of their notary public duties, with the sole exception of representing others before the courts, unless they are also licenced as a barrister.

History

Notaries Public (also called “notaries,” “notarial officers,” or “public notaries”) hold an office which can trace its origins back to ancient Rome, when they were called scribae , tabellius or notarius. They are easily the oldest continuing branch of the legal profession, existing throughout the whole of the world.

The history of Notaries is set out in detail in Chapter 1 of Brooke’s Notary (12th edition):

The office of a public notary is a public office. It has a long and distinguished history. The office has its origins in the civil institutions of ancient Rome. Public officials, called “scribae,” that is to say, scribes, rose in rank from being mere copiers and transcribers to a learned profession prominent in private and public affairs. Some were permanent officials attached to the Senate and courts of law whose duties were to record public proceedings, transcribe state papers, supply magistrates with legal forms, and register the decrees and judgements of magistrates.

In the last century of the Republic, probably in the time of Cicero, a new form of shorthand was invented, and certain arbitrary marks and signs, called “notae,” were substituted for words in common use. A writer who adopted the new method was called a “notarius.”. Originally, a notary was one who took down statements in shorthand and wrote them out in the form of memoranda or minutes. Later, the title “notarius” was applied almost exclusively to registrars attached to high government officials, including provincial governors and secretaries to the Emperor.

Notwithstanding the collapse of the Western Empire in the 5th century AD, the notary remained a figure of some importance in many parts of continental Europe throughout the Dark Ages. When the civil law experienced its renaissance in mediæval Italy from the 12th century onwards, the notary was established as a central institution of that law, a position which still obtains in countries whose legal systems are derived from the civil law.

The separate development of the common law in England, free from most of the influences of Roman law, meant that notaries were not introduced into England until later in the 13th and 14th centuries. At first, the Papal Legate appointed notaries in England. In 1279, the Archbishop of Canterbury was authorised by the Pope to appoint notaries. Not surprisingly, in those early days, many of the notaries were members of the clergy. In the course of time, members of the clergy ceased to take part in secular business, and laymen, especially in towns and trading centres, began to assume the official character and functions of a modern notary.

The Reformation produced no material change in the position and functions of notaries in England. However, in 1533, the enactment of “the Act Concerning Peter’s Pence and Dispensations” (The Ecclesiastical Licences Act, 1533) terminated the power of the Pope to appoint notaries and vested that power in the King, who then devolved it to the Archbishop of Canterbury, who in turn devolved it to the Master of the Faculties.

Traditionally, notaries recorded matters of judicial importance as well as private transactions or events where an officially authenticated record or a document drawn up with professional skill or knowledge was required.

Common Law Jurisdictions

The duties and functions of notaries public are described in Brooke’s Notary on page 19 in these terms:

Generally speaking, a notary public […] may be described as an officer of the law […] whose public office and duty it is to draw, attest or certify under his official seal deeds and other documents, including wills or other testamentary documents, conveyances of real and personal property and powers of attorney; to authenticate such documents under his signature and official seal in such a manner as to render them acceptable, as proof of the matters attested by him, to the judicial or other public authorities in the country where they are to be used, whether by means of issuing a notarial certificate as to the due execution of such documents or by drawing them in the form of public instruments; to keep a protocol containing originals of all instruments which he makes in the public form and to issue authentic copies of such instruments; to administer oaths and declarations for use in proceedings […] to note or certify transactions relating to negotiable instruments, and to draw up protests or other formal papers relating to occurrences on the voyages of ships and their navigation as well as the carriage of cargo in ships. [Footnotes omitted.]

A notary, in almost all common law jurisdictions, is a qualified, experienced practitioner trained in the drafting and execution of legal documents. (A notable exception is 48 of the 50 U.S. States and some parts of Canada.) Traditionally, notaries recorded matters of judicial importance as well as private transactions or events where an officially authenticated record or a document drawn up with professional skill or knowledge was required. Specifically, the functions of notaries include the preparation of certain types of documents (including international contracts, deeds, wills and powers of attorney) and certification of their due execution; the administering of oaths, witnessing affidavits and statutory declarations; the certification of copy documents; the noting and protesting of bills of exchange; and the preparation of ships’ protests.

The notary seals or stamps the documents they certify and records them in a register (also known as a “protocol”) that they maintain and keep forever. These are known as “notarial acts”. In countries subscribing to the Hague Convention Abolishing the Requirement for Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents, only one further act of certification is required, known as an apostille, and is issued by a government department (usually the Foreign Affairs Department or something similar). For other countries, an “authentication” or “legalisation” must be issued by the Foreign Affairs Ministry of the country from which the document is being sent or the Embassy, Consulate-General or High Commission of the country to which it is being sent.

Information On Individual Countries

England

After the passage of the 1533 Act, which was a direct result of the Reformation in England, all notary appointments were issued directly through the Court of Faculties. The Court of Faculties is attached to the office of the Archbishop of Canterbury.

In England and Wales, there are several classes of notaries. English notaries, not to be confused with commissioners for oaths, also acquire the same powers as solicitors and other law practitioners, with the exception of the right to represent others before the courts (unless also licenced as barristers) once they are licenced or commissioned notaries. There are also Scrivener notaries, who get their name from the Scriveners’ Company; until 1999, when they lost this monopoly, they were the only notaries permitted to practice in the City of London.

The other notaries in England are either ecclesiastical notaries whose functions are limited to the affairs of the Church of England or other qualified persons who are not trained as solicitors or barristers but perfectly satisfy the Master of the Faculties of the Archbishop of Canterbury that they possess an adequate understanding of the law. Both the latter two categories are required to pass examinations set by the Master of Faculties. The regulation of notaries was modernised in the 1990s as a result of the Courts and Legal Services Act 1990, Section 57.

Australia

In all Australian States and Territories (except Queensland), notaries public are appointed by the Supreme Court of the relevant state or territory. Very few have been appointed as notaries for more than one state or territory.

Queensland, like New Zealand, persists with the archaic practice of appointment by the Archbishop of Canterbury acting through the Master of the Faculties.

Many Australian notaries are lawyers, but the overall number of lawyers who choose to become notaries is relatively low. For example, in South Australia (a state with a population of 1.5 million), of the over 2,500 lawyers in that state, only about 100 are also notaries, and most of those do not actively practice as such. In Melbourne, Victoria, in 2002, there were only 66 notaries for a city with a population of 3.5 million and only 90 for the entire state. Compare this with the United States, where it has been estimated that there are over 3 million notaries for a nation with a population of 296 million.

As Justice Debelle of the Supreme Court of South Australia said in the case of In The Matter of an Application by Marilyn Reys Bos to be a Public Notary [2003] SASC 320, delivered September 12, 2003, in refusing the application:

As a general rule, an applicant [for appointment as a notary] should be a legal practitioner of several years standing at least. Even a cursory perusal of texts on the duties and functions of a public notary demonstrates that a number of those functions and duties require at the very least a sound working knowledge of Australian law and commercial practice. In other words, the preparation of a notarial act plainly requires a sound knowledge of law and practice in Australia, especially of the due preparation and execution of commercial and contractual instruments. It is essential that notaries in this state have a sufficient level of training, qualification, and status to enable them to efficiently and effectively discharge the functions of the office.

Historically, there have been some very rare examples of patent attorneys or accountants being appointed, but that now seems to have ceased.

However, there are three significant differences between notaries and other lawyers.

Firstly, the duty of a notary is to the transaction as a whole, not just to one of the parties. In certain circumstances, a notary may act for both parties to a transaction as long as there is no conflict between them, and in such cases, it is his or her duty to ensure that the transaction that they conclude is fair to both sides.

Secondly, a notary will often need to place and complete a special clause or attach a special page (known as an eschatocol) on or to a document in order to make it valid for use overseas.

In the case of some documents which are to be used in some foreign countries, it may also be necessary to obtain another certificate known either as an “authentication” or an “apostille” (depending on the relevant foreign country) from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

Thirdly, a notary identifies himself or herself on documents by the use of his or her individual seal. Most other nations consider such seals to be of great importance for proving a document’s authenticity because of their historical origins.

Their principal duties include:

1. attestation of documents and certification of their due execution for use in Australia and internationally,
2. preparation and certification of powers of attorney, wills, deeds, contracts and other legal documents for use in Australia and internationally,
3. administering of oaths for use in Australia and internationally,
4. witnessing affidavits, statutory declarations and other documents for use in Australia and internationally,
5. certification of copy documents for use Australia and internationally,
6. exemplification of official documents for use internationally,
7. noting and protesting of bills of exchange, and
8. preparation of ships’ protests.

Although it was once usual for Australian notaries to use a red embossed seal, it is now common for them to use a red-inked stamp that contains the notary’s full name and the words “notary public”. It is also common for the seal or stamp to include the notary’s chosen logo or symbol.

In South Australia and Scotland, it is acceptable for a notary to use the letters “NP” after their name. Thus, a South Australian notary may have “John Smith LLB NP” or something similar on his business card or letterhead.

Australian notaries do not hold “commissions,” which can expire. Once appointed, they are authorised to act as a notary for life and can only be “struck off” the Roll of Notaries for proven misconduct.

All Australian jurisdictions also have Justices of the Peace (JP) or Commissioners for Affidavits who can witness affidavits or statutory declarations and certify documents. However, they can only do so if the relevant affidavit, statutory declaration, or copy document is to be used only in Australia rather than in a foreign country, with the possible exception of a few Commonwealth countries, not including the United Kingdom or New Zealand, except for very limited purposes. Justices of the Peace (JPs) are (usually) laypersons who have minimal, if any, training (depending on the jurisdiction) but are of proven good character. Therefore, a US notary resembles an Australian JP rather than an Australian notary.

Germany

In Germany, the Notar (pl. Notare) (civil law notary) plays an important role in contractual agreements relating to special laws such as

1. property law
2. land charge certification
3. law of succession
4. family law
5. corporate law.

The Notar has legal training equivalent to the training of a solicitor. (S) He is appointed by the state government and is authorised to certify deeds. He provides independent and impartial advice to contractual parties. Depending on the state, German notaries officiate either as a “single-profession notary” (i.e., his/her only profession is being a civil law notary) or as a “solicitor and notary” (i.e., a solicitor who may also act as a civil law notary).

The notary drafts the deeds in accordance with German law and provides legal advice regarding a contract. He will read aloud the deed in front of all parties involved. All parties sign and have the notary seal the deed. It is irrevocable.

In Germany, a notary is very important to daily business. All property transactions must be signed and sealed at the office of the notary public (§ 311 b of the German Civil Code).

New Zealand

Unless excluded under dominion or colonial law, the Master of the Faculties formerly had the authority to appoint notaries public in a dominion or colony. The Public Notaries Act 1833 (UK) specifically governed the admission of notaries in the Commonwealth. The provisions of the Public Notaries Act 1801-43 requiring a notary to be a solicitor did not apply overseas, nor did a notary need a practicing certificate as a solicitor or from the Court of Faculties.

The usual procedure followed is that the applicant lodges with the Court of Faculties a memorial counter-signed by local merchants, shipping companies, bankers, and other persons of substance that shows the local need for a notary and the fitness of the applicant. They also lodge their certificate of admission as a solicitor. A fee accompanies the application. The applicant, with the support of two other notaries public, who vouch that the applicant is well skilled in the affairs of notarial concern, petitions the Master of the Faculties.

The chief consideration for the approval of an application is whether there is sufficient need in the district regarding the convenience of bankers, shipowners, and merchants. The local society of notaries must believe that there is a need for an additional notary in the region the applicant serves. Priority is given, as a matter of practice, to an applicant within the same firm as a replacement in the case of the death of a notary or where a practicing notary is reducing his or her workload because of age or infirmity.

The Master of the Faculties continues to appoint notaries overseas in the exercise of the general authorities granted by s. 3 of the Ecclesiastical Licences Act 1533 (Eng). In these situations, he follows local considerations of public convenience.

United States

In the United States, a notary public is a person appointed by a state government (often the governor or secretary of state of the state, or in some cases, the state legislature) to serve the public as an impartial witness. Since the notary is a state officer, whether the jurisdiction is common law or civil law is determined on a state-by-state basis; Louisiana is the only civil law state. In most states, only qualified persons can apply for such an appointment, called a commission. Qualifications vary from state to state, but states often bar people with certain types of criminal convictions and/or below a certain age from being appointed, and applicants usually must pass an examination covering notary practices and law. The material for such exams is typically contained in a booklet published by the state. Some states also require a bond or insurance.

Notaries in the United States are much less closely regulated than notaries in civil law jurisdictions or in most other common law countries, typically because U.S. notaries have less authority. In the United States, a non-attorney notary may not offer legal advice or prepare documents (with the exception of Louisiana) and cannot recommend how a person should sign a document or even what type of notarization is necessary. In many cases, a notary cannot authenticate a copy of a document. The most common notarial acts in the United States are the taking of acknowledgements and oaths.

• An acknowledgement is an attestation by a notary that a person proved his or her identity to the notary’s satisfaction, then either signed the document in question in the notary’s presence or acknowledged that a signature on the document was their own and that they signed intending to “execute,” or put into legal effect, the document. States vary in the specific requirements for identification and whether the person needs to actually sign the document in front of the notary. The typical form for an acknowledgement is:

On the ….day of …. in the year…before me, the undersigned, personally appeared …personally known to me or proved to me on the basis of satisfactory evidence to be the individual(s) whose name(s) is (are) subscribed to the within instrument and acknowledged to me that he/she/they executed the same in his/her/their capacity(ies), and that by his/her/their signature(s) on the instrument, the individual(s), or the person upon behalf of which the individual(s) acted, executed the instrument.

• A jurat is the official written statement by a notary public that he or she has administered and witnessed an oath or affirmation for an oath of office, or on an affidavit—that is, that a person has sworn to or affirmed the truth of information contained in a document, under penalty of perjury, whether that document is a lengthy deposition or a simple statement on an application form. The simplest form of jurat and the oath or affirmation administered by a notary are:

• Jurat: “Sworn to before me this …….. day of …….., 20 ……”

• Oath: “Do you solemnly swear that the contents of this affidavit subscribed by you is correct and true?”

• Affirmation (for those opposed to swearing oaths): “Do you solemnly, sincerely, and truly, declare and affirm that the statements made by you are true and correct?

In most cases, all of the acts of a notary must include a venue, or official listing of the place where they happened, usually in the form of the state and county, with the abbreviation “ss” for the Latin scilicet, “more particularly,” often in this form:

State of .......)
                )ss:
County of.......)

The National Notary Association estimates the United States has 4.5 million notaries public.

California

California notaries must take a 6-hour class before taking the notary exam. California allows online and home study courses to complete the qualification process. California anti-fraud law requires a thumbprint in the journal entry for certain types of transactions. Documents with blank spaces cannot be notarized (a further anti-fraud measure). California explicitly prohibits notaries from using the literal Spanish translation of their title. The use of a notary seal is required.

Florida

Florida notaries public are appointed by the Governor to serve a four-year term. New applicants and commissioned notary public must be bona fide residents of the State of Florida, and first-time applicants must complete a mandatory three-hour online or in-person Notary Public Education class. Florida state law also requires that a notary public have a bond in the amount of $7,500.00. A bond is required in order to compensate an individual harmed as a result of a breach of duty by the notary. In other words, the bond protects a notary’s client (not the notary). Applicants are submitted and paid through a state-approved bonding agent. Florida is one of three states (Maine and South Carolina are the others) where a notary public can solemnise the rites of matrimony (perform a marriage ceremony).

Illinois

The Secretary of State appoints notaries public in Illinois for a four-year term. Also, residents of a state bordering Illinois (e.g., Iowa, Indiana, or Wisconsin) who work or have a place of business in Illinois can be appointed to a one-year team. Notaries must be United States citizens or aliens lawfully admitted for permanent residence; be able to read and write the English language; be residents of (or employed within) the State of Illinois for at least 30 days; be at least 18 years old; not be convicted of a felony; and not have had a notary commission revoked or suspended during the past 10 years.

An applicant for the notary public commission must also post a $5,000 bond, usually with an insurance company, and pay an application fee of $10. An oath of office usually goes with the application. If the Secretary of State’s office approves the application, the Secretary of State then sends the commission to the clerk of the county where the applicant resides. If the applicant records the commission with the county clerk, he or she then receives the commission. Illinois law prohibits notaries from using the literal Spanish translation in their title and requires them to use a rubber stamp seal for their notarizations. The notary public can then perform his or her duties anywhere in the state, as long as the notary resides in the county where he or she was appointed.

Louisiana

The Louisiana notary public is a civil law notary with broad powers, as authorised by law, usually reserved for the American-style combination of “barrister/solicitor” lawyers and other legally authorised practitioners in other states. A commissioned notary in Louisiana is a civil law notary that can perform/prepare many civil law notarial acts usually associated with attorneys and other legally authorised practitioners in other states, except to represent another person or entity before a court of law for a fee. Notaries are not allowed to give “legal” advice, but they are allowed to give “notarial” advice—i.e., explain or recommend what documents are needed or required to perform a certain act—and do all things necessary or incidental to the performance of their civil law notarial duties. They can prepare any document a civil law notary can prepare and, if ordered or requested to by a judge, prepare certain notarial legal documents, in accordance with the law, to be returned and filed with that court of law.

Maine

Maine notaries public are appointed by the Secretary of State to serve a seven-year term. Maine is one of three states (Florida and South Carolina are the others) where a notary public can solemnise the rites of matrimony (perform a marriage ceremony).

Maryland

Maryland notaries public are appointed by the Secretary of State to serve a four-year term. New applicants and commissioned notaries public must be bona fide residents of the State of Maryland or work in the state. An application must be approved by a state senator before it is submitted to the Secretary of State.

Montana

Montana notaries public are appointed by the Secretary of State and serve a four-year term. A Montana notary public has jurisdiction throughout the states of Montana, North Dakota and Wyoming. These states permit notaries from neighbouring states to act in the state in the same manner as one from that state under reciprocity, e.g. as long as that state grants notaries from neighbouring states to act in their state. [Montana Code: 1-5-605]

Nevada

The Secretary of State is charged with the responsibility of appointing notaries by the provisions of Chapter 240 of the Nevada Revised Statutes. Nevada notaries public who are not also practicing attorneys are prohibited by law from using “notario,” “notario publico,” or any non-English term to describe their services. (2005 Changes to NRS 240)

Nevada notary duties: administer oaths or affirmations; take acknowledgements; use a subscribing witness; certify copies; execute jurats; or take a verification upon oath or affirmation.

The State of Nevada Notary Division Page provides more information about duties, requirements, appointments, and classes.

New Jersey

Notaries are commissioned by the State Treasurer for a period of five years. Notaries must also be sworn in by the clerk of the county in which he or she resides. One can become a notary in the state of New Jersey if he or she: (1) is over the age of 18; (2) is a resident of New Jersey OR is regularly employed in New Jersey and lives in an adjoining state; (3) has never been convicted of a crime under the laws of any state or the United States, for an offence involving dishonesty, or a crime of the first or second degree, unless the person has met the requirements of the Rehabilitated Convicted Offenders Act (NJSA 2A:168-1). Notary applications must be endorsed by a state legislator.

Notaries in the state of New Jersey serve as impartial witnesses to the signing of documents, attest to the signature on the document, and may also administer oaths and affirmations. Seals are not required; many people prefer them and as a result, most notaries have seals in addition to stamps. Notaries may administer oaths and affirmations to public officials and officers of various organisations. They may also administer oaths and affirmations in order to execute jurats for affidavits and verifications and to swear in witnesses.

Notaries are prohibited from pre-dating actions, lending notary equipment to someone else (stamps, seals, journals, etc.), preparing legal documents or giving legal advice, or appearing as a representative of another person in a legal proceeding. Notaries should also refrain from notarizing documents in which they have a personal interest.

By statute, New Jersey attorneys may administer oaths, affirmations, and witness documents.

New York

New York notaries are empowered to administer oaths and affirmations (including oaths of office), to take affidavits and depositions, to receive and certify acknowledgements or proof of deeds, mortgages, powers of attorney, and other instruments in writing, to demand acceptance or payment of foreign and inland bills of exchange, promissory notes, and obligations in writing, and to protest these (that is, certify them) for non-acceptance or non-payment. They are not empowered to marry couples, their notarization of a will is insufficient to give the will legal force, and they are strictly forbidden to certify “true copies” of documents. Every county clerk’s office in New York must have a notary public available to serve the public free of charge.

Pennsylvania

A notary in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is empowered to perform seven distinct official acts: take affidavits, verifications, acknowledgements and depositions, certify copies of documents, administer oaths and affirmations, and protest dishonoured negotiable instruments. A notary is strictly prohibited from giving legal advice or drafting legal documents such as contracts, mortgages, leases, wills, powers of attorney, liens or bonds. Pennsylvania is one of the few states with a successful Electronic Notarization Initiative.

South Carolina

South Carolina notaries public are appointed by the Governor to serve a ten-year term. All applicants must first have that application endorsed by a state legislator before submitting their application to the Secretary of State. South Carolina is one of three states (Florida and Maine are the others) where a notary public can solemnise the rites of matrimony (perform a marriage ceremony).

Utah

Utah requires that impression seals be used, and the seal must be in purple ink.

Virginia

A Virginia notary must either be a resident of Virginia or work in Virginia and is authorised to acknowledge signatures, take oaths, and certify copies of non-government documents that are not otherwise available; e.g., a notary cannot certify a copy of a birth or death certificate since a certified copy of the document can be obtained from the issuing agency. Changes to the law effective July 1, 2007, impose certain new requirements; while seals are not required, if used, they must be legible. Also, the notary’s registration number must appear on any document notarized. Changes to the law effective July 1, 2008, will permit notarization of electronic signatures.

Wyoming

Wyoming notaries public are appointed by the Secretary of State and serve a four-year term. A Wyoming notary public has jurisdiction throughout the states of Wyoming and Montana. These states permit notaries from neighbouring states to act in the state in the same manner as one from that state under reciprocity, e.g. as long as that state grants notaries from neighbouring states to act in their state.

Controversies

A Maryland requirement that, to obtain a commission, a notary declare his belief in God, as required by the Maryland Constitution, was found by the United States Supreme Court in Torcaso v. Watkins to be unconstitutional. Historically, some states required that a notary be a citizen of the United States. However, the U.S. Supreme Court, in the case of Bernal v. Fainter (the Fainter case), declared that to be impermissible.

In the U.S., there are reports of notaries (or people claiming to be notaries) having taken advantage of the differing roles of notaries in common law and civil law jurisdictions to engage in the unauthorised practice of law. The victims of such scams are typically illegal immigrants from civil law countries who need assistance with, for example, their immigration papers and want to avoid hiring an attorney. Confusion often results from the mistaken premise that a notary public in the United States serves the same function as a notario público in Spanish-speaking countries (which are civil law countries; see below). Prosecutions in such cases are difficult, as the victims are often deported and thus unavailable to testify.

Commissioned Officers

A Commissioned Officer in the United States Armed Forces is not considered a Notary; however, federal law allows a commissioned officer to certify documents and administer oaths. In addition to the powers granted by the federal government, some states have enacted laws granting notarial powers to commissioned officers.

Civil Law Jurisdictions

The role undertaken by notaries in civil law countries is much greater than in common law countries. Notaries in the former countries frequently undertake work done in common-law countries by the Titles Office and other government agencies. The qualifications imposed by some countries are much greater. In Greece, for example, a practitioner must choose to be either a solicitor or a notary.

This should be contrasted with the Latin American notario, who may be similar to an attorney at law or lawyer. A French notaire, a German notar, and an Italian notary register wills and other documents and authenticate real estate.

In the few United States jurisdictions where trained notaries are allowed (such as Puerto Rico), the practice of these jurists is limited to non-judicial legal advice, property conveyancing, and legal drafting. See civil law notary.

Disclaimer

This site contains general legal information but does not constitute professional legal advice for your particular situation. Persuing this glossary does not create an attorney-client or legal adviser relationship. If you have specific questions, please consult a qualified attorney licensed in your jurisdiction.

This glossary post was last updated: 9th April 2024.