ACKNOWLEDGMENT

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

A Notarial act in which a Notary certifies having positively identified a document signer who personally appeared before the Notary and acknowledged having signed the document.

ADMITTED SURETY INSURER

ADMITTED SURETY INSURER

Where a California Notary purchases the required $15,000 surety bond.

AFFIANT

AFFIANT

Signer of an affidavit; taker of an oath or affirmation.

AFFIDAVIT

AFFIDAVIT

Written statement signed before a Notary
( or other authorized official) by a person who swears or affirms that the statement is true.

AFFIRMATION

AFFIRMATION

Spoken, solemn promise on one’s personal honor, with no reference to a Supreme Being, made before a Notary in relation to a jurat or as a notarial act in its own right.

CREDIBLE IDENTIFYING WITNESS

CREDIBLE IDENTIFYING WITNESS

Individual who personally knows a document signer, swears to or affirms the identity of that signer, signs in the Notary’s journal, and presents the Notary with a state-approved ID.

AWARENESS

AWARENESS

Ability to understand.

BOND

BOND

Written guarantee that money up to a limit will be paid by a surety to a person harmed by Notary’s negligence or misconduct.

CERTIFICATE (NOTARY CERTIFICATE)

CERTIFICATE (NOTARY CERTIFICATE)

Wording completed, signed and sealed by a Notary that states the particulars of a notarization and appears at the end of a signed document or on a paper attached to it.

CERTIFIED COPY

CERTIFIED COPY

A copy that has been verified as an accurate reproduction of an original document.

CONFLICT OF INTEREST

CONFLICT OF INTEREST

A situation where an individual has a direct financial or beneficial interest that would prevent them from being impartial.

DEPOSE

DEPOSE

To make a deposition; to testify under oath or affirmation orally or in writing.

EXECUTE

EXECUTE

To comply with legal formalities in order to render (a deed, etc.) effective, as by signing your signature.

FRAUD

FRAUD

FRAUD

Deception aimed at causing a person unknowingly to surrender money, property, rights or advantages without a compensation; cheating.

IMMIGRATION CONSULTANT

IMMIGRATION CONSULTANT

A non-attorney who is qualified to provide non-legal immigration services.

IMPARTIAL WITNESS

IMPARTIAL WITNESS

An individual with no direct financial or beneficial interest in a transaction.

INSTRUMENT

INSTRUMENT

A formal legal writing; a document.

JURAT

JURAT

Notarial act in which a Notary certifies that the signer personally appeared before the Notary, and that the Notary watched the signing of the document, positively identified the signer, and administered
an oath or affirmation in which the signer declares the document to be truthful and accurate.

JURISDICTION

JURISDICTION

The geographic area in which a Notary is authorized to perform notarial acts.

LIABILITY

LIABILITY

Responsibility for damages caused by misconduct.

LIMITED FUND

LIMITED FUND

Reference to the limited $15,000 surety bond for claims against a Notary.

MISCONDUCT

MISCONDUCT

Performing a prohibited action or failing to perform a required action.

NEGLIGENCE

NEGLIGENCE

Failure to use a degree of care that is expected of a person of ordinary prudence and intelligence.

OATH

OATH

Spoken, solemn promise to a Supreme Being that is made before a Notary in relation to a ju rat or as a notarial act in its own right.

PERSONAL KNOWLEDGE

PERSONAL KNOWLEDGE

Familiarity with an individual resulting from interactions over a period of time sufficient to eliminate every reasonable doubt that the individual has the identity claimed. Personal knowledge is not an option for California Notaries to use to identify a signer.

PERSONAL APPEARANCE

PERSONAL APPEARANCE

Appearing face-to-face and in the same room with a Notary at the time of notarization.

POSITIVE IDENTIFICATION

POSITIVE IDENTIFICATION

Determining who a person is without a reasonable doubt or suspicion.

PRINCIPAL

PRINCIPAL

Person who is a signer of and party to a document.

PROTEST

PROTEST

Notarial act in which a Notary certifies that a constituent did not receive payment.

PUBLIC PROTECTION LIABILITY REQUIREMENT

PUBLIC PROTECTION LIABILITY REQUIREMENT

A reference to the required $15,000 surety bond which provides protection for the public against damages caused by Notary misconduct.

REASONABLE CARE

REASONABLE CARE

Degree of attentiveness and precaution that would be expected of a person of ordinary prudence and intelligence.

REPRESENTATIVE CAPACITY

REPRESENTATIVE CAPACITY

Status of signing or acting on behalf of another person or on behalf of a legal entity such as a corporation, partnership or trust.

SATISFACTORY EVIDENCE

SATISFACTORY EVIDENCE

Absence of any suspicious circumstances surrounding the identity of a signer, plus evidence in one of the following forms: reliable
state-approved identification documents or the sworn or affirmed word of one or two credible identifying witnesses that an individual has the identity claimed.

SIGNATURE BY MARK

SIGNATURE BY MARK

An “X” or other symbol made in place of a signature by a person unable to write which is witnessed by two other persons in order for the mark to be notarized.

STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS

STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS

Law setting a time limit on filing a lawsuit to recover damages or prosecuting for criminal misconduct.

SUBSCRIBE

SUBSCRIBE

To give consent or approval by signing one’s name.

SUBSCRIBING WITNESS

SUBSCRIBING WITNESS

An individual who swears to or affirms having viewed the signing or heard the acknowledgement of the signing of a document by a person who does not appear before the Notary. The subscribing witness must be identified by a credible witness who personally knows the subscribing witness, is personally known to the Notary, and presents the Notary with an acceptable identification document.

SURETY

SURETY

Security given against loss or damage or as a guarantee that an obligation will be met.

UNAUTHORIZED PRACTICE OF LAW

UNAUTHORIZED PRACTICE OF LAW

Practice of law by a person who is not a legal professional, typically defined as helping another person to draft, prepare, complete, select, or understand a document or transaction.

WILLFUL

WILLFUL

A voluntary, intentional or deliberate violation of known duty.

WILLINGNESS

WILLINGNESS

State of acting without duress or undue influence; state of acting voluntarily.

VENUE

VENUE

Location (State and County) where a notarization is performed, as indicated at the top of most Notary certificates.

VITAL RECORD

VITAL RECORD

Birth certificate, death certificate, marriage license or other public record of demographic data.