Notary Public Underwriters Blog
Refusing to Notarize: What You Need to Know
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- Published: July 27, 2026
A core duty of a notary public is to deter fraud. One way notaries do this is by thoughtfully and accurately applying their states’ laws and regulations to each notarial act they perform.
Understanding Notary Laws and Responsibilities
All states’ notary laws and regulations explain—in varying detail—how a notary public should properly perform a notarial act and execute other duties such as creating a journal (record book) record of all their notarial acts.
Notaries throughout the United States are also required to stop a notarial act for cause—for example, when a fundamental mandate of notarization has not been met. Notaries are also permitted, subject to applicable laws and regulations, to refuse or halt a notarial act.
When a Notary Should Refuse or Halt a Notarial Act
State laws and administrative regulations authorizing a notary to refuse or halt a notarial act are typically detailed enough to provide clear guidance. Many state laws and rules are also broad enough to give the notary some discretion in exercising judgment when the situation is not clear-cut.
But refusing to notarize can expose notaries to liability or legal penalties. This might happen when the notary incorrectly applies their permission to refuse, or when they fail to refuse despite the fact that they should have under the notary’s applicable state law and/or regulations.
Knowledge Is a Notary’s Best Protection
A notary’s best protection is knowledge. If you don’t already do this, set aside the time to regularly review your state’s notary laws and regulations. They may change, so you need to review them at regular intervals.
Don’t overlook browsing the website of your state’s notary commissioning officer, either. Most provide a mix of guidelines, online handbooks and aids to notarization, videos and/or presentations… and it’s all created to help you be an informed, accurate and confident notary.
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