16.1 AB 2004 — Tangible Copy Certification

Why AB 2004 Exists

Real estate is going paperless: deeds are signed electronically, often notarized by remote online notarization (RON) in another state, then stored in the cloud. The problem is that many California county recorder offices still only accept tangible (ink-on-paper) documents and have no infrastructure to ingest an electronic record. Before 2025 there was no clean, statutory way to turn a digitally executed deed into a paper document a recorder would trust.

Assembly Bill (AB) 2004, signed September 27, 2024 and effective January 1, 2025, fixes this by amending Government Code section 27201.1. It authorizes a disinterested custodian to certify that a paper printout is a "complete and accurate" copy of an electronic record, and requires the recorder to accept that certified copy if the statute's conditions are met.

The Disinterested Custodian — Exact Definition

The most heavily tested term is disinterested custodian. AB 2004 defines it narrowly:

• A person who has access to an electronic record displaying intact, tamper-evident security procedures, AND
• who is NOT the grantee, the beneficiary, or otherwise a person who directly benefits from the electronic record.

Trap: "Tamper-evident security procedures" must be intact. If the digital seal shows the file was altered after notarization, the record no longer qualifies for certification.

Step-by-Step Procedure

1. An electronic record exists with intact tamper-evident security (e.g., a digitally notarized deed).
2. A paper (tangible) copy is printed.
3. The disinterested custodian prepares a written certification stating the printout is a complete and accurate copy.
4. The custodian subscribes and swears to (or affirms) that certification before a California notary.
5. The notary administers the oath/affirmation, witnesses the signing, and attaches a compliant jurat under Government Code 8202.
6. The certified tangible copy is submitted to the county recorder, which must accept it.

The Notary's Limited Role

This is an ordinary jurat act. You are notarizing the custodian's sworn statement, not the deed itself, and you do not certify the copy — California notaries generally cannot make certified copies except of their own journal lines and powers of attorney, so AB 2004 deliberately routes the accuracy claim through the custodian's oath.

Recording Validity Safe Harbor

AB 2004 includes a protective rule: once the certified tangible copy is copied into the proper book of record, it imparts notice of its contents to subsequent purchasers and encumbrancers even if the person who certified it turns out not to qualify as a disinterested custodian. The chain of title stays clean; the consequences of a bad certification fall on the custodian, not on innocent later parties relying on the record.

Worked Scenario

A Nevada notary performs a RON acknowledgment on a grant deed for California property. The buyer wants it recorded in Los Angeles County, which takes paper. A title-company employee with no stake in the sale opens the electronic file (tamper-evident seal intact), prints it, signs a certification that it is a complete and accurate copy, and swears to that before you. You verify the employee's ID, administer the oath, and complete a jurat. The recorder accepts the paper copy. You charged the standard $15 maximum jurat fee — AB 2004 created no special higher fee.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Treating it like a certified copy. A California notary cannot certify that a deed copy is accurate. AB 2004 routes that claim through the custodian's sworn statement; you only perform the jurat. Marking your seal on the deed itself, rather than on the custodian's certification with its jurat, is wrong.
• Skipping the oath. A jurat without an administered oath or affirmation is defective. The custodian must verbally swear or affirm; silent signing is not enough.
• Accepting an interested signer. If the person presenting the copy is the buyer, lender, or agent, they are not disinterested. Do not perform the act for them.
• Ignoring the tamper-evident requirement. The custodian must have accessed a record whose security procedures are intact; a flagged or broken seal disqualifies the record.
• Inventing a fee. AB 2004 created no special fee. Charge the ordinary $15 maximum for the jurat.

How This Connects to RON

AB 2004 and SB 696 solve two halves of the same problem. SB 696 (next section) makes out-of-state RON acts recognized in California; AB 2004 makes the resulting electronic record recordable on paper in counties that take only tangible documents. Together they let a digitally closed transaction reach a California county recorder's book of record. Expect the exam to test the pairing: recognition of the RON act is one rule, converting it to recordable paper is another.

On the Exam

• Effective date: January 1, 2025 (Government Code 27201.1).
• Disinterested custodian: access to a tamper-evident electronic record; not a grantee/beneficiary/direct beneficiary.
• Notarial act: a jurat under GC 8202 — oath plus witnessed signature.
• Notary does NOT compare or certify the copy; the custodian swears to accuracy.
• Fee: ordinary $15 jurat maximum; AB 2004 created no special fee.
• Safe harbor: recording imparts notice even if the custodian was not truly disinterested.