The Expired Commission and the $15 Acknowledgment
Elena's New Hampshire notary commission expires on June 30. In June she performs 8 acknowledgments for a mortgage refinance and charges $15 each, telling clients it covers travel and notary insurance. The statutory fee for an acknowledgment is $2.00. She also moves from Manchester to Massachusetts on June 15 and does not notify the Secretary of State. On June 25 she mails her renewal application; it arrives at the Secretary of State's office on July 5. She continues to notarize on July 2 and July 10, using her old stamp. A borrower complains about the $15 charge and asks whether the July notarizations are valid. Elena says she is in the renewal pipeline and that notaries can charge whatever the market will bear. She asks what her exposure is and how to fix her status.
1. What is wrong with Elena's $15 charges?
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New Hampshire sets the fee for an acknowledgment by statute, and the scheduled fee is $2.00. A notary may not charge more than the statutory fee for the notarial act itself. Elena cannot relabel the excess as travel or notary insurance to avoid the fee limit. She performed 8 acknowledgments at $15 each, collecting $120 when the statutory fee would total $16. The excess is $104. She should refund the overcharge to the borrower and correct her fee schedule. Separate charges for travel may be permissible in some circumstances if clearly disclosed and not a disguised notarial fee, but the facts here show a flat $15 charge per acknowledgment, which exceeds the statutory maximum.
2. Were Elena's July 2 and July 10 notarizations valid?
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No. Her commission expired on June 30. The renewal application was mailed June 25 but did not arrive until July 5; more importantly, a late-filed renewal does not retroactively extend a commission that has already expired. Being in the renewal pipeline is not the same as holding a valid commission. The July 2 and July 10 notarizations were performed without authority and are void. Elena should stop notarizing immediately, notify the parties whose documents she handled in July, and explain that new notarial acts are required before a currently commissioned notary. She should not backdate the July certificates or claim her old stamp was still valid.
3. What should Elena do about her move and her renewal application?
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She must report her address change to the Secretary of State and must not continue using a Manchester address as her official notary address. Because her commission expired before the renewal was filed, she should ask the Secretary of State whether she may file a new application or whether the late renewal can be treated as a new application. She should not assume the July 5 filing preserved her authority. Until she receives a new commission and takes any required oath, she must not perform notarial acts. She should also refund the $104 overcharge, keep records of the refund, and avoid advertising notary services while uncommissioned.