Notarial Acts, Certificates, and Forms of Acknowledgment
Two families of notarial acts
The acknowledgment and the jurat do different jobs, and exam writers exploit the confusion. In an acknowledgment the signer appears, is identified, and acknowledges that he or she voluntarily executed the document for its stated purpose - the notary administers no oath and does not vouch for the contents. In a jurat (verification on oath or affirmation) the notary administers an oath or affirmation and the signer swears the statements are true; the certificate recites "sworn to and subscribed before me." A signature-witnessing act certifies only that the person appeared and signed in the notary's presence.
What a complete certificate shows
Venue (State of Arkansas, County of ______ where the act occurred), the date of the appearance, the name of the signer, the operative words of the act ("acknowledged before me," "subscribed and sworn to"), the notary's signature exactly as commissioned, the official seal, and the commission expiration date. Anything missing makes the certificate attackable in court and at the recording office.
Traps
- Applying jurat language to a deed - deeds are acknowledged, not sworn.
- Dating a certificate before the signer appeared, or leaving it undated.
- Signing the notary block in advance for a stack of documents.
- Believing the notary certifies the truth of the document's contents or the signer's legal capacity.
Worked example
A signer hands you a mortgage and asks for "the stamped page for swearing." The mortgage requires an acknowledgment, so use the acknowledgment form; a jurat on a mortgage is the wrong act even if the seal, date, and signature are flawless.