Our Mission
As the leading authority on the American Notary office, the National Notary Association is committed to serving Notaries and their employers throughout the United States by imparting knowledge, building community, and promoting sound professional standards of practice for the benefit and protection of the public.
Our History
Established in 1957, the forerunner of the National Notary Association was founded to fill a gaping void. It provided American Notaries Public for the first time with a full package of the essential education, guidance, resources, tools and advocacy they desperately needed to properly perform their critical fraud-deterrent duties in service to the public.
In 1964, the organization became the National Notary Association. The NNA soon expanded its core services to include Notary seminars, the telephone “Hotline” and the “Notary Event of the Year” — the NNA’s annual conference. The Association dedicated itself to the mission of helping Notaries achieve five critical goals: compliance with state laws and best practices; avoidance of liability exposure; limiting risks to signers, employers and all others who rely on their official acts; aspiring to professional excellence; and embracing new opportunities to earn additional income and expand their careers.
As national membership grew, the NNA was sought out by state officials requesting assistance in modernizing their outdated Notary laws. Thus, the Association collaborated with Yale Law School to create the Uniform Notary Act, first published in 1973 and updated in 1984, 2002 and 2010 as the Model Notary Act. Over 40 states have since adopted significant parts of the MNA. Also highly influential was the NNA’s Notary Public Code of Professional Responsibility, published in 1998 and now widely recognized as the American Notary’s ethical code.
In 2002, the NNA launched its Notary Signing Agent Section, the first of a growing number of specialized membership sections offering tailored training and resources to Notaries in fields with unique demands. The NNA stands today as the widely acknowledged leading authority and educator on the American Notary Public office and the preeminent supporter and inspiration for the nation’s Notaries.