Ethics, Prohibited Practices and UPL — Notary Public practice questions

A customer brings a blank bill of sale and asks the notary to fill in the terms before notarizing. The notary should

1. complete the form exactly as dictated, since the signer supplies all of the content
2. fill in only the non-legal blanks, such as the dates, and leave the remainder empty
3. decline to prepare or complete it and suggest consulting an attorney
4. prepare the document and charge a separate document preparation fee for the work

Answer: C — decline to prepare or complete it and suggest consulting an attorney

C) Correct — drafting or completing a legal document for another is generally the practice of law unless the notary is separately licensed or authorized. A) Signer dictation does not cure the problem; the notary is still preparing the instrument. B) Half-right with a missing caveat: even 'simple' entries are choices about the document's content. D) Charging for it compounds the violation rather than legitimizing it.

A mobile notary travels to a hospital for a signing. Regarding a travel fee, the general rule is that

1. travel fees are prohibited because they exceed the statutory maximum for each act
2. a travel fee is permitted only when the notary performs at least two separate acts
3. travel charges are treated exactly the same as notarial fees in every single state
4. where allowed, it is separate from the notarial fee and should be agreed in advance

Answer: D — where allowed, it is separate from the notarial fee and should be agreed in advance

D) Correct — many states permit a separately stated travel charge, some regulate or cap it, and advance disclosure protects the notary; the details vary by state. A) Confuses the per-act cap with a separate service charge. B) Invents a condition tied to the number of acts. C) Assumes uniformity across states that does not exist.

A notary's fees are:

1. Left to each notary's discretion, based on travel time and the complexity of the act
2. Set by state statute, which commonly caps the maximum chargeable per notarial act
3. Prohibited entirely, because a public officer may not accept payment for official acts
4. Optional add-ons that the signer may decline while still receiving the notarization

Answer: B — Set by state statute, which commonly caps the maximum chargeable per notarial act

A) Wrong — a notary may not set fees freely; the state fixes the ceiling. B) Correct — fees are statutory and generally capped per act, with the amount varying by state. C) Wrong — notaries may lawfully charge for their services up to the statutory limit. D) Wrong — the fee is a regulated charge for the act, not an optional extra.

A notary is disqualified from notarizing when:

1. The notary holds a direct financial or beneficial interest in the underlying transaction
2. The signer is a complete stranger whom the notary has never encountered before that day at the counter
3. The fee allowed by statute for the act is too small to justify the notary's time and travel
4. The document runs only a page or two and contains no blank spaces left to be filled in

Answer: A — The notary holds a direct financial or beneficial interest in the underlying transaction

A) Correct — a direct interest in the transaction, or standing to gain from it beyond the statutory fee, disqualifies the notary because impartiality is the essence of the office. B) Wrong — notarizing for strangers is the norm; identification, not acquaintance, is what the law requires. C) Wrong — a notary may decline work, but a small fee is not a legal disqualification. D) Wrong — document length is irrelevant to the notary's capacity to act.

A notary may NOT:

1. Notarize a document mentioning their employer if the notary has no personal interest
2. Notarize for a regular customer
3. Notarize their own signature
4. Charge a statutory fee

Answer: C — Notarize their own signature

A) OK. B) Correct — universal prohibition. C/D) Allowed.

A notary is a salaried loan processor at a bank and notarizes a mortgage on which the bank is the lender. Under the general rule,

1. salary alone is usually not disqualifying, though a commission on the deal may be
2. she is disqualified, because her employer profits directly from this transaction
3. she is disqualified, because bank employees may never notarize their bank's documents
4. she may act only if the borrower signs a written waiver of the apparent conflict

Answer: A — salary alone is usually not disqualifying, though a commission on the deal may be

A) Correct — the usual line is between a fixed wage, which does not turn on this deal, and a direct gain such as a commission or fee contingent on this closing. B) Would disqualify nearly every employed notary and is not the general rule. C) Overstates: employees routinely notarize employer documents where no personal gain exists. D) Waivers by a party do not create or remove notarial authority.

A notary may charge:

1. Per notarial act, up to the maximum the state allows, or nothing at all if the notary waives the fee
2. Per page of the document notarized, with the total capped by the state's published schedule
3. Per hour of the notary's time, prorated for any partial hour spent with the signer
4. Per signature collected, no matter how many separate notarial acts were actually performed

Answer: A — Per notarial act, up to the maximum the state allows, or nothing at all if the notary waives the fee

A) Correct — the fee attaches to each notarial act, may not exceed the statutory ceiling, and a notary is always free to charge less or nothing. B) Wrong — page count does not determine the fee; a long document with one certificate is still one act. C) Wrong — notarial fees are not billed as time. D) Wrong — two signers acknowledging on one document are two acts, and one signer signing twice under one certificate is not two acts. Maximum fee amounts vary by state, so consult your own fee schedule.

A signer appears intoxicated and cannot describe what he is signing. The notary refuses. This refusal is

1. improper, because a notary is not permitted to sit in judgment of a signer's mental state
2. proper, since the notary must be satisfied the signer is aware and acting willingly
3. improper unless a physician has confirmed the signer's incapacity in writing
4. proper only if the signer additionally lacks any acceptable identification

Answer: B — proper, since the notary must be satisfied the signer is aware and acting willingly

B) Correct — awareness and volition are threshold conditions the notary must assess in a lay, observational way. A) Reverses the duty: the notary is not diagnosing, but must observe. C) No medical certification is required for a notary's ordinary judgment. D) Conflates two independent grounds; either alone justifies refusal.

A signer asks, 'What does this indemnification clause mean for me?' The BEST reply is that

1. the notary may summarize the clause, since summarizing is not the same as advising
2. the clause is standard and nothing to worry about, based on the notary's experience
3. the notary cannot explain the terms and the signer should ask the drafter or a lawyer
4. the notary will notarize only once the signer agrees that the clause is acceptable

Answer: C — the notary cannot explain the terms and the signer should ask the drafter or a lawyer

C) Correct — interpreting the legal effect of document language is legal advice; the notary's role is limited to the notarial act. A) Repackages advice as 'summary'; the risk is identical. B) Reassurance about legal effect is advice, and it is also unfounded. D) Conditions the act on a judgment the notary has no authority to require or evaluate.

A notary who is the SOLE BENEFICIARY of a power of attorney being notarized must:

1. Decline — a direct beneficial interest in the instrument disqualifies the notary from acting
2. Proceed, because powers of attorney are routine instruments notarized every day
3. Notarize but disclose the interest to the signer and note the disclosure in the journal
4. Charge a higher fee to offset the additional risk of notarizing the instrument

Answer: A — Decline — a direct beneficial interest in the instrument disqualifies the notary from acting

A) Correct — naming the notary as the sole beneficiary gives the notary a direct interest in the transaction, which destroys the impartiality the office requires; the act must be referred to a disinterested notary. B) Wrong — the document's familiarity has nothing to do with the conflict. C) Wrong — disclosure does not cure a disqualifying interest. D) Wrong — no fee can make a disqualified notary competent to act. The precise definition of a disqualifying interest varies by state.

May a notary who is not an attorney advertise as an immigration expert or notario publico?

No. In many states using notario publico is expressly prohibited because it implies attorney-level authority in some countries.

Notary fees?

Set by state statute. Range from $0-$25 per act (most states $2-$15). Many states cap fees; some allow travel fees separately.

NNA Code of Professional Responsibility — core principles?

Personal appearance, identification, voluntariness, awareness, record-keeping, neutrality, refusing illegal acts. Sets standards above legal minimum.

May a notary notarize a family member's signature?

Many states prohibit or discourage it, especially for a spouse or someone in whose document the notary has an interest. Best practice is to decline and refer elsewhere.