With California’s Notary certificate changes taking effect earlier this month, businesses are asking how the new law will affect their documents. Here are answers to three common questions from businesses.
1. Many of the documents notarized in our California office are sent out of state. Do the notarizations for these documents require the new certificate wording?
It depends. When executing a jurat or proof of execution, California Notaries must always use the certificates with the new consumer notice regardless of where the document is sent. California Notaries who take acknowledgments on documents that are filed in another state or jurisdiction may complete any acknowledgment form as may be required in that other state or jurisdiction, provided the form does not require the Notary to determine or certify that the signer holds a particular representative capacity or to make other determinations or certifications not allowed by California law.
2. If a document is notarized in another state and sent to California to be recorded, does the notarial certificate have to include the new consumer notice?
No. With acknowledgments specifically, the statute says that any certificate of acknowledgment taken in another place will be sufficient in California if it is taken in compliance with the laws of the place where the acknowledgment is made (Civil Code Section 1189[b]). With jurats and proofs, the same principle applies although there isn’t a specific statute as for acknowledgments.
3. We have many in-house documents with older California notarial certificate wording printed on them already. Do we have to update every document with California notarial wording on it?
If the document requires a California jurat, proof of execution or acknowledgment, it must include the consumer notice. It would be easier for the Notary if you updated your forms to comply with the new consumer notice. This way, the Notary would be able to complete the form that is printed on the document. However, if you choose not to update your in-house documents, the Notary could still attach a correct certificate with the new consumer notice.
David Thun is an Associate Editor at the National Notary Association.
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Five Things You Need To Know About The New CA Notary Certificate Wording