3.4 Jurats

Definition

A jurat — sometimes called a verification upon oath or affirmation — is a notarial act in which the notary certifies three distinct things at once:

1. The signer's identity (personal knowledge or satisfactory evidence);
2. The signer signed the document in the notary's presence; and
3. The signer took an oath or affirmation swearing the contents are true.

The jurat is the most demanding common act because it bundles a signature-in-presence with the verbal oath from Section 3.3. The certificate language that signals a jurat is "Subscribed and sworn (or affirmed) before me."

Jurat vs. Acknowledgment (the most-tested comparison)

Exam trap: If a client hands you a pre-signed affidavit and asks for a jurat, you cannot simply notarize it. A jurat requires the signing to occur in front of you. The proper fix is to have the client sign a fresh copy in your presence after you administer the oath — or, if the document is already signed, the client must re-acknowledge and re-sign. Never backdate or accept the prior signature for a jurat.

Step-by-Step Jurat Procedure

1. Personal appearance of the signer in Connecticut (or by live audio-video for permitted RON acts).
2. Identity verification by personal knowledge or satisfactory evidence.
3. Administer the oath or affirmation — the signer audibly swears or affirms the contents are true (per Section 3.3).
4. Witness the signing — the signer signs the document while you watch. This is mandatory and non-waivable.
5. Complete the jurat certificate, including venue, date, the signer's name, your signature, printed name, commission expiration, and seal.

Sample Jurat Certificate

State of Connecticut
County of _______________

Subscribed and sworn to (or affirmed) before me on this ____ day of
__________, 20___, by ________________________, proved to me on the
basis of satisfactory evidence to be the person who appeared before me.

_________________________________
Notary Public
My Commission Expires: ___________

Affidavits: The Classic Jurat Document

An affidavit is a voluntarily made written declaration of facts, confirmed by the affiant's oath or affirmation, made before an officer authorized to administer that oath — such as a notary. The jurat is the notary's certificate at the foot of the affidavit confirming the oath was given and the signature was witnessed. Other jurat documents include depositions, sworn applications, and declarations under penalty of perjury.

Worked scenario: A client emails a signed affidavit and asks you to "just stamp it." You decline. You print a clean copy, confirm the client's ID, administer the affirmation, watch them sign, then complete the "subscribed and sworn before me" certificate. Stamping the pre-signed version would be a void jurat and a disciplinable act.

Why the Sequence Cannot Be Reordered

The five jurat steps must happen in order, and the exam tests whether you understand why. Identity must be confirmed before the oath, because you cannot meaningfully swear in someone you have not identified. The oath should be administered before or at signing so the signature is made under the weight of the sworn promise. The signing must occur in your presence — that is the irreducible core of a jurat. Skipping or reordering steps does not merely look sloppy; it can render the jurat void and the underlying affidavit inadmissible.

Jurat Recordkeeping and Defensibility

Because a jurat carries an oath, it is the act most likely to surface in litigation — affidavits are filed in court, and opposing parties may attack them. A notary's best protection is a clean, contemporaneous record: the date, the signer's identity method, and confirmation that the oath was administered and the signing witnessed. While Connecticut does not mandate a journal for every notary, keeping one for jurats is strongly advisable. If a notary is later asked under oath whether the affiant actually appeared and swore, a journal entry is far more credible than memory.

Exam trap: Candidates often confuse "subscribed and sworn before me" (jurat) with "acknowledged before me" (acknowledgment). The verb sworn is the tell: it signals an oath was administered, which only happens in a jurat. If the certificate language references swearing or affirming, it is a jurat and the in-presence signing rule applies.