Notarial Definitions
Definitions the exam repeats
- Notarial act: an act authorized under Article 14A, including acknowledgment, jurat, oath or affirmation, signature witnessing, and copy certification.
- Principal: the person whose signature is notarized or who makes an oath or affirmation.
- Acknowledgment: the principal appears, is identified, and declares that the principal signed the record voluntarily for its stated purpose. The notary does not have to see the signature.
- Jurat: the signer appears, signs in the notary's presence, and takes an oath or affirmation that the statements are true. The certificate commonly says "subscribed and sworn to."
- Verification on oath or affirmation: the signer swears or affirms the truth of statements, often in an affidavit.
- Signature witnessing: the signer signs in the notary's presence; no oath is administered.
- Copy certification: the notary certifies that a copy is true and complete; it is not available for records that law prohibits copying.
Worked example
A form is already signed and the signer asks for a jurat so the notary can "make it sworn." A jurat requires the signer to sign in the notary's presence and then take an oath or affirmation. If the signature is already complete, the notary should not use jurat wording unless the signer signs again in the notary's presence. An acknowledgment may fit if the signer only needs to declare voluntary execution.
Traps
- Acknowledgment and jurat are not interchangeable; only the jurat includes an oath or affirmation.
- In an acknowledgment, the notary certifies identity and voluntary execution, not the truth of the document's contents.
- Copy certification is not a license to certify public records or vital records that cannot be copied.