Notary Public
A notary public is a public official appointed by a state government to help deter fraud. A notary is a person authorized to perform certain legal formalities, especially to draw up or certify contracts, deeds, and other documents for use in other jurisdictions. A notary public is a public officer who is appointed by the government. He is a public officer or other person authorized to authenticate contracts, acknowledge deeds, take affidavits, protest bills of exchange, take depositions, etc. His duty is to certify the deeds and other documents and to note the non-acceptance or non-payment of bills of exchange and protest them later, if necessary. Their consent is often the final step in establishing power of attorney, closing on a home, or opening a retirement account.
Their responsibilities include:
- Taking affidavits and statutory declarations;
- Taking acknowledgments of deeds and other conveyances;
- Protesting notes and bills of exchange; and
- Providing notice of foreign drafts.
Notaries are appointed by a government authority, such as a court or lieutenant governor, or by a regulating body often known as a society or faculty of notaries public. A notary public is a public officer who attests or certifies writings (such as a deed) to make them authentic and takes affidavits, depositions, and protests of negotiable paper. For lawyer notaries, an appointment may be for life, while lay notaries are usually commissioned for a briefer term, with the possibility of renewal. He is a public official, usually, a solicitor, who is legally authorized to administer oaths, attest and certify certain documents, etc. These documents include – Estates, Deeds, Powers of attorney, Affidavits, Licenses, Contracts, Loan documents, etc.
Notary publics witness the signing of important documents and verify the identity of the signer(s), their willingness to sign the documents, and their awareness of the contents of the document or transaction. A notary public may also administer oaths in depositions or other situations. Even though this type of oath may not take place in court, the witness can still be held accountable and be punished for perjury. Notaries can only be held liable for actions they take while performing the notary function. For example, although notaries are responsible for attesting to the validity of a signature, they are not responsible for the validity of the document.
