7.2 Journal Requirements

The Journal Mandate: C.R.S. 24-21-519

Colorado is a mandatory-journal state. Under C.R.S. 24-21-519, a notary must record every notarial act, in one journal at a time, contemporaneously with the act. The journal is the notary's first line of defense if a signature is later challenged in court, so the exam treats record-keeping as seriously as the act itself.

Two permitted formats

A notary may keep one tangible and one electronic journal, but each act is recorded in only one. Remote online notarization (RON) acts must be recorded electronically, and the RON technology provider keeps an audiovisual recording of the session as an additional record.

Required contents of each entry

For every act, record at least:

1. Date and time of the notarization
2. A description of the record (document title or type) or the type of act performed
3. The printed name and address of each individual for whom the act is performed
4. A description of how identity was verified — personal knowledge, an identification document, or a credible witness
5. The fee charged, if any
6. If a satisfactory ID document was relied on, the type of identification and any expiration

For a RON act, also note the technology provider used and any interpreter present.

Why each element matters

Each required field has a forensic purpose. The date and time let an investigator confirm whether the notary and signer could actually have met. The record description distinguishes which of several documents the act covered. The signer name and address identify the principal if the document is later contested. The ID method is the single most important entry: if a signature is challenged as a forgery, the journal line showing "Colorado driver license, examined in person" is the notary's evidence that the statutory standard of identification was met.

The fee field both proves the notary did not overcharge and corroborates that an act took place.

Worked example: a real-estate closing

A notary handles a closing where the same buyer signs a deed of trust, a promissory note acknowledgment, and an affidavit. That is three notarial acts, so the journal needs three entries — each with its own date/time, record description, ID method, and fee — even though the signer and ID are identical. One block entry covering "closing docs" is non-compliant because an investigator later examining the affidavit alone would have no dedicated entry for it.

Worked example: a subpoenaed journal

Suppose two years after a notarization, a deed of trust is litigated and the borrower claims he never appeared. The notary is served with a subpoena. Because the act was journaled, the notary produces the entry showing the date, time, the borrower's name and address, "personal appearance, examined Colorado ID," and the $15 fee. That contemporaneous record is far stronger evidence than memory, and it is exactly why Colorado made journaling mandatory. A missing entry, by contrast, leaves the notary exposed and can itself be cited as a violation.

Retention and the line that breaks people

Because the clock starts at the last entry, a journal that was finished early in a four-year commission may still need to be kept well past the commission's end.

Disposition when the commission ends or the notary resigns or dies

When a commission ends, the notary (or a personal representative) chooses a disposition and notifies the Secretary of State:

• Retain the journal personally for the balance of the 10-year period, OR
• Transmit it to the Colorado State Archives, OR
• Leave it with an employer that has custody of the journal under the employment relationship

A lost or stolen journal must be reported to the Secretary of State promptly (in writing), and the notary should keep evidence of the report.

Common journal traps

• "I only journal important documents." Wrong — all acts, including a simple jurat on a one-page affidavit.
• Whiteout / erasing. Never alter a past entry. Line through an error once, initial, and date it; the original must remain legible.
• Storing the ID photocopy in the journal. Recording the type of ID is required; keeping a photocopy of the ID itself is generally discouraged because it concentrates sensitive data.
• Confusing retention with the commission term. Retention is 10 years from the last entry, independent of the four-year commission.

Exam Cheat Sheet

• Statute: C.R.S. 24-21-519 — journal mandatory for all acts
• Paper journal = permanent, bound, numbered pages (no loose-leaf)
• Electronic journal = permanent, tamper-evident, SOS-compliant; RON must be electronic
• Record: date/time, record description, signer name+address, ID method, fee
• Retain 10 years from the last entry; report loss/theft to the SOS