Notary Public Underwriters Blog
“Signature Witnessing” – A “No” for Some States’ Notaries
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- Published: February 27, 2023
“But Notaries witness signatures, don’t they?”
Yes, of course they do! Typically, no matter which notarial act is actually indicated on the document, the person whose signature must be notarized waits until they are present with the Notary before signing it.
Signing in a Notary’s presence is required for an oath or affirmation notarial act (also called a verification). It’s not required for an acknowledgment notarial act—the document may be signed prior-to or during notarization. Most document signers don’t know these differences… they play it safe and wait to sign until they are present with a Notary.
But if Notaries witness their customers’ signatures, why is “signature witnessing” a “no” for some states’ Notaries? It’s because “signature witnessing” is a specific, authorized notarial duty in many—but not all—states.
Only in states where the notarial act of “signature witnessing” is allowed, Notaries perform all the usual steps of notarization such as requiring the signer’s presence, identifying the signer, reviewing the document, and assessing the signer’s comprehension and willingness to voluntarily sign the document. But for a signature witnessing notarial act there is no verbal ceremony as there would be when taking an acknowledgment or administering an oath/affirmation (verification). For a signature witnessing, the Notary watches the signer sign the document, then completes the notarial certificate and record book entry.
So remember, even though Notaries see their customers sign documents all the time, the notarial act of signature witnessing must be approved in your state in order for you to perform it.
Related Article(s)
Signature Witnessing: Context Matters