Powers and duties of a notary public
This domain tests the scope of a Colorado notary's authority: what a notary may and may not do, when personal appearance and identity verification are required, and how conflicts of interest invalidate an act. Questions often ask you to choose between notarize and refuse.
Authority comes from the commission
A Colorado notary is a public officer commissioned by the Secretary of State under RULONA. The commission is statewide and lasts four years. The notary may perform only the notarial acts recognized by Colorado law: acknowledgments, oaths and affirmations, verifications on oath or affirmation, signature witnessing, copy certification, and certificates of fact. The notary may not give legal advice, draft legal documents, or explain the legal effect of a document.
Personal appearance and identity
Every notarial act requires the principal to appear personally before the notary, physically or, for a registered remote notary, by audio-video communication. The notary must also obtain satisfactory evidence of identity: personal knowledge, a government-issued photo ID, or a credible witness. The notary must screen for capacity and voluntariness. A notary may refuse to perform an act if the principal does not appear, cannot be identified, or appears coerced.
Conflicts and prohibited acts
A notary may not notarize the notary's own signature, a document to which the notary is a party, or a document in which the notary has a beneficial interest. The notary may not pre-sign or pre-date a certificate, use a false title such as notario publico, or notarize a blank document. Family relationship alone is not automatically disqualifying; the disqualifier is being a party or having a beneficial interest.
Worked example
Ana asks you to notarize her signature on a deed transferring property to a trust in which you are a trustee. The correct answer is refuse. Your beneficial interest as trustee makes you a party with a conflict, so any acknowledgment you execute is defective and exposes you to discipline. Refer Ana to another notary.
Traps that cost marks
- Thinking a notary may notarize a spouse's or relative's signature merely because of the relationship; the test is party or beneficial interest.
- Treating personal appearance as optional for paper notarization.
- Accepting an expired ID or a photocopy as satisfactory evidence.
- Believing a notary can certify a copy of a birth certificate or a recorded public record.
- Giving legal advice about what the document means.