Notary signing agents and their categories

In the United States, a notary public is an official who is authorized to administer oaths and affirmations, take depositions, witness or attest signatures of documents, certify copies of documents by affixing stamps and seals. 

Notaries are typically state employees but they may also be appointed by corporations. They have limited power which varies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction but in most cases they can only certify that persons signing them are who they say they are. The following blog post will explore what categories there are for notary signing agents. 

The following blog post will explore what categories there are for notary signing agents.

Types and categories of notarizations 

The most basic type of notarial act is a certification, which can be provided to officials for use in processing certain official documents such as real estate and business records.

• Certification does not involve the presence or participation of the actual signer (i.e., the person whose signature is being notarized). Instead, it involves an attestation that a particular individual’s signature was witnessed by the signing officer. By contrast, the second most common form of notarial act—an acknowledgment—involves the actual appearance of one or more individuals before a notary public in order to acknowledge their signatures on an instrument such as a deed or will. An acknowledgement provides proof that an individual executed and signed legal documents in front of witnesses at  a particular time and place.

• A certification is technically a type of notarization, since it does involve the actual or physical presence of an individual—the signer (the person whose signature is being certified). The difference between the two proceedings involves the function served by the sworn officer. In a certification, it is generally just attestation that another person signed a document in front of the issuing officer. By contrast, when an individual appears before an officer for purposes of acknowledging his or her signature on legal documents—which can be used to transfer real estate and other assets from one party to another—there are two additional elements: first, that the signing parties have met all legal requirements for executing and transferring their respective rights; second, if there  is a third-party witness present, it is that witnesses‘ sworn testimony to the effect that they saw the parties sign all relevant documents.

• The third most common form of notarial act—a jurat—is often confused with an acknowledgment because both proceedings involve a party’s personal appearance before an officer. However, there are two distinctions between them. First, in a jurat, there is no requirement for the presence or involvement of a third-party witness. Second, by definition, only through an acknowledgment can rights be transferred or conveyed from one individual or entity to another. On the other hand, in jurats it is possible to have officers certify documents which do not convey title and ownership rights (for example, affidavits).

• A fourth form of notarial act is called a verification. In verifications, the signer appears before an officer—i.e., a notary public—to verify or affirm that certain facts are true and correct to the best of his or her knowledge. This action can be performed either in person or by mail, telephone or some other remote means (for example, via email). Verification generally does not convey any legal rights from one party to another because it merely presents information on behalf of an individual as fact without any corresponding transfer involved in the actual signing of documents.

• There are also two other kinds of acts whose purposes overlap with those served by acknowledgments and jurats: Oaths and declarations . A declaration is basically a statement or brief narrative that an individual is willing to swear is true under penalty of perjury. A declaration can also be notarized, but it does not require the actual appearance of the declarant before the officer who notarizes it. It merely requires a sworn statement from the signer attesting to his or her willingness to take full responsibility for all statements made in a document. An oath typically contains similar wording and functions as a declaration—i.e., making a truthful statement about one’s knowledge or opinions regarding certain matters—and may include an attestation clause. However, unlike declarations, which do not always have an attestation clause at the end (and therefore are technically not considered oaths), all oaths must contain this element .

• There are a few kinds of notarial acts that, while they do not involve the transfer of property rights, nonetheless convey a legal status upon an individual: certificates for both alien registration and citizenship, as well as adoption papers. Both types of certificates indicate to third-parties certain facts regarding individuals (in these cases, people who have become naturalized U.S. citizens through a process called “naturalization,” or people who have been adopted). Also note that certificate is one of the most commonly used terms for this kind of document. Certificates are generally issued by offices appointed by state governors—essentially, secretaries of state or their equivalent; however such officials may also appoint other parties to issue similar documents to certify occurrences on  their behalf.

• An affidavit is also a kind of notarial act, although it usually does not require an officer to witness the signing in person. (The sole exception is when they are required by law to have firsthand knowledge of the signers’ identities.) Most affidavits are signed before someone authorized by state law to administer oaths or affirmations—i.e., a court official, judge or magistrate—and attested as true under penalty of perjury . They can also be signed before any other individual authorized by a state’s law to take affidavits and administer oaths or confirmations on its behalf (for example, common-law notaries).

• In this blog post, we’ve talked about the different categories of notary signing agents and what they do. We hope that you find our information helpful as you navigate through your next steps in finding a Portland-area notary. If you are still unsure where to start or if there is anything else we can help with, please contact us! Our team will be happy to answer any questions on how PDX Signing might work for your needs.