Get to know what the benefits of hiring a Notary Public are for you!

So, what are the top five benefits of hiring a Notary Public? I assessed how a Notary Public may be able to help you.

I think that one of the most important things that a Notary can bring to a transaction, is the certainty of knowing that the document will be accepted in any country in the world. Sometimes, we find that some countries require the document to be authorised or certified by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, here in the UK, by means of what is known as an apostille. Sometimes, countries like Spain, France, or Germany, will require an apostille to be attached to the notarised document. But, often for places like India, Australia, Canada or America, the document can be accepted just as it is once it’s notarised.

Another way in which my notary work is so vitally important, is people recognise that I make a ‘high play’ about being accurate about what I say in my certificates and documents. For example, when people come with a degree certificate that they need to be notarised. I am always required to check with the relevant university that the certificate is valid. And then after I've done that, the copy of the certificate can be notarised, and the receiving jurisdictions (the country that's going to receive this notarised document), will feel comfortable that the document has been fully checked before I have come to notarise it. For this reason, places like Australia and Canada will require, for example, medical degree certificates and other qualifications to be notarised. People like nurses come to see me, when they're moving to Australia, to practise because they need the certificates to be notarised; and I have to explain that the only reason that Australia, New Zealand, and Canada will accept a copy certified by notary is that they know that we're required (under our rules) to check that these qualifications are genuine.

The third thing that notaries bring, is the knowledge that we identify the people who are, for example, signing in front of us a document or who are bringing document to be certified. I make a point of making sure that I meet people personally before I undertake notary job for them. Of course, times are changing, and I'm aware that as time goes on it may be necessary to adapt that policy I have, to make sure that, for example, I might be prepared to in certain circumstances providing all things are checked out I might be able to notarise documents for people who have not come to see me personally. However, I will need to think very carefully about what I decide to do relating to that going forward. Anyway, for the meantime, I will require people to come and see me personally, so that I can identify them by some form of original photo ID like a passport or a valid driving licence.

The fourth thing that I think notaries particularly bring to bear on documents being sent abroad is that we are required to check that the people in front of us would like to be legally bound by the notarised documents and are able to be legally bounded by them. Very occasionally, I meet with someone in my notary work who it is clear to me cannot deal with their own affairs, perhaps, because they've lost their man mental capacity, or in very rare occasions, I have met people who have been declared bankrupt, who can't sign on their own behalf because they are not entitled to. This may be because they’re currently being looked after by a trustee in bankruptcy. So, it is important in notary work to make sure that the people are in fact willing and able to be legally bound by the documents that they are presenting to me.

Finally, I think the fifth thing that really sticks in my mind that notaries particularly are good at is record-keeping. Solicitors, when they are making a certified copy of a document, are not required to keep any records of the documents that they've certified, but that's not the case with Notaries. Notaries must keep a full protocol with copies or originals of certain documents and notaries are required to keep a register of all notarial acts undertaken by the Notary. I also make the point of keeping a copy of the photo ID that the people have presented to me, although, I am aware that there are regulations government governing data protection and the keeping of personal records and documents like this.

So, to conclude, what further detail could I possibly add to these benefits?

I think it is beneficial for clients and other people who are likely to rely upon the documents that I'm doing to know for certain that I am required to check the authenticity and the genuineness of the documents presented to me. I am also required to check and identify the clients that I see and to make sure that they are willing to be legally bound by the documents and they can enter the documents. I also think it's helpful that I keep records because I often find that three or six months down the line, people can telephone me and say “do you remember when we came to see you about our marriage declaration”, for example, “we have lost it or it got lost in the post or unfortunately we didn't manage to get married that time but we hoping that you might be able to help us to do another one”, and it's often quite useful to be able to refer back to those previous documents to complete the story.

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