Which Notary Certificate Should I Use?
California Notary Publics are only allowed specific wording on acknowledgments and Jurat certificates. No other wording on these certificates is allowed under California State law if the certificate is used to record important documents within the State of California.
What happens when you are out in the field and need to notarize a document and the notarial wording on the certificate part is not correct, what do you the Notary public do?
The Notary Public will read the wording that is provided on the certificate and attached to the document that is to be notarized, a loose certificate that fulfills the requirements of the certificate that was provided. This step helps the Notary Public identify which loose certificate to use. What happens when the wording is both a Notary Acknowledgement and Jurat wording? What happens if both the words "acknowledged" (this is acknowledgment wording) and "subscribed and sworn" (this is jurat wording) are used in the same certificate? What certificate does the Notary Public use? Do you ask the principal which certificate they want you to use? Can you the Notary Public determine what certificate to use? Can the Notary Public still perform this notarization?
Let's think about this. Is the wording that much different? Read it carefully. California does have exact wording requirements for both Acknowledgment and Jurat certificates. This verbiage covers both certificates, so it will be replaced with an Acknowledgment and a Jurat. There is no law against using both certificates for a notarization, just don't forget to follow the laws of each certificate and log both notarizations as their line items in your notary journal.
Remember to read the certificate before you decide if you can or cannot notarize it.
Do you have any topics that you have questions on? We welcome you to share.
Check back with us on the 15th of February for some tips on keeping a complete Notary Journal that will stand up in a court of law.
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