Notary Plus

Notary Fun Fact:
Notaries are empathetic and anticipate client needs. In addition to being skilled at writing, notaries are detail-oriented and conscientious. These legal experts provide sound professional advice and are meticulous at every stage of their professional relationships.

Although many states have closed or suspended court functions, litigators still need to have clients to sign affidavits and verifications for cases to progress. Notary laws generally contain the requirement for the notary and the principal signer to be in “close physical proximity” during a notarization. With a little thought and preplanning, notaries can employ social distancing practices to reduce the amount of physical contact and time they need to spend with the signer.

Wear gloves and a mask and provide them for the principal signers.
Eliminate physical contact. Do not shake hands.
Do not share pens. Have all parties bring their own and sanitize after usage or gift them.
Always keep a safe distance from the principal (minimum of six feet). Standing at the opposite ends of a six-foot conference table or passing documents through a bank teller’s glass window satisfies the personal appearance requirement.
Do not touch the identification. View it from the desk or tabletop
Arrange the documents such that each document needing to be notarized is grouped together, so that the amount of time being spent with the signer can be dramatically reduced.
Have the signer sign all signatures that require an acknowledgment prior to meeting the notary. (Acknowledged signatures do not need to be signed in front of the notary; they simply must be acknowledged.)
Identify each page requiring a signature to be notarized prior to the notarial act so you can have the signer acknowledge each signature simultaneously. Doing so will allow the notary to notarize in bulk: “Do you acknowledge that you willingly signed pages 2, 4, 6, 8, and 12?”
Law firms may also provide “drive-through” notary services so that clients do not have to leave their vehicles and may simply pass documents through a window.