MT Notary flashcards
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- Notarial act
- An official act by a notarial officer involving a record, such as an acknowledgment, jurat, verification on oath or affirmation, signature witnessing, or copy certification.
- Record
- Information inscribed on a tangible medium or stored in an electronic or other medium and retrievable in perceivable form under Montana notary law.
- Personal knowledge
- Familiarity with an individual gained through interactions sufficient to ensure the individual's identity, not merely recognition of the person's name.
- Satisfactory evidence
- Identification of an individual by personal knowledge or by a credible identification document containing a photograph, signature, and physical description.
- Notarial officer
- A notary public or another individual authorized by Montana law to perform notarial acts.
- Verification on oath
- A notarial act in which a person states on oath or affirmation that a record is true, and the notarial officer administers the oath or affirmation.
- Sign
- To execute or adopt a tangible symbol, or attach an electronic symbol or process, to a record with present intent to authenticate it.
- Commission term
- A Montana notary public commission lasts four years and expires on the date stated on the commission unless revoked or resigned earlier.
- Commissioning authority
- The Montana Secretary of State commissions notaries public, issues commissions, and administers the state notary public program.
- Renewal
- A notary seeks a new commission by applying to the Secretary of State; an expired notary may not perform notarial acts until recommissioned.
- Oath of office
- A notary applicant affirms support for the constitutions and faithful performance of notarial duties as part of the commissioning process.
- Official name
- The name under which a notary is commissioned and signs notarial certificates; it must match Secretary of State records.
- Expiration date
- The date on which a notary's commission ends; after that date the person lacks authority to perform notarial acts.
- Acknowledgment certificate
- A notarial certificate stating that the signer personally appeared, was identified, and acknowledged executing the record before the notarial officer on a stated date.
- Jurat certificate
- A notarial certificate stating that the signer subscribed and swore or affirmed to the truth of the record before the notarial officer on a stated date.
- Signature witnessing
- A notarial act in which the signer signs a record in the notarial officer's presence and the officer completes a certificate describing that act.
- Copy certification
- A notarial act in which the officer certifies that a copy is a true and correct copy of a record in the officer's custody.
- Official seal
- A stamp or seal containing the notary's name, the words Notary Public, State of Montana, and the commission expiration date.
- Representative capacity
- A statement in a notarial certificate that the signer acted as an agent, officer, partner, attorney in fact, or other representative.
- Certificate date
- The date the notarial officer completes the notarial act; it must be stated in the certificate and should match the act.
- Self-notarization
- A prohibited act in which a notary performs a notarial act on the notary's own signature or on a record to which the notary is a party.
- Beneficial interest
- A direct financial or personal interest in a record that disqualifies a notary from performing a notarial act concerning that record.
- Revocation
- An administrative sanction in which the Secretary of State cancels a notary's commission, ending the notary's authority to perform notarial acts.
- Suspension
- A temporary administrative sanction that bars a notary from performing notarial acts for a specified period or until conditions are met.
- Civil penalty
- A monetary sanction the Secretary of State may impose on a notary for violating Montana notary law, separate from criminal penalties.
- Unauthorized notarial act
- Performance of a notarial act by a person without a valid commission or after expiration, suspension, or revocation, which may carry criminal penalties.
- Electronic notarization
- A notarial act performed on an electronic record using an electronic signature and electronic seal that meet Montana requirements.
- Remote notarization
- A notarial act performed using real-time audio-video communication when the signer and notary are not in the same physical location.
- Identity proofing
- The process a remote notary uses to verify a signer's identity through knowledge-based questions, credential analysis, or other approved methods.
- Tamper-evident
- A property of an electronic record or seal that makes unauthorized changes detectable after the notarial act is completed.
- Electronic seal
- An electronic image or process attached to an electronic record that contains the notary's required official information and is linked to the record.
- Remote journal
- A record a remote notary keeps listing each remote notarial act, including date, signer, identification method, and act type.