2.1 Types of Notarial Acts

The Six Authorized Acts

New Jersey overhauled its notary law in 2021. The New Jersey Law on Notarial Acts (P.L. 2021, c.179, effective October 22, 2021) is modeled on the Revised Uniform Law on Notarial Acts (RULONA, 2018). It replaced the old four-act framework with six defined notarial acts. The exam tests which act fits a given document and what the signer must do.

Acknowledgments

An acknowledgment is the most common act. The signer personally appears and declares to the notary that the signature is theirs and that they signed willingly for the purposes stated. The signer does not have to sign in front of the notary—the document may already be signed. The certificate reads "acknowledged before me." Typical documents: deeds, mortgages, powers of attorney, and contracts.

• The notary verifies identity using satisfactory evidence (government photo ID, personal knowledge, or a credible witness).
• The notary does not vouch for the truth of the contents—only that signing was voluntary.

Jurats (Verifications on Oath or Affirmation)

A jurat combines a signature with a sworn statement. RULONA calls this a "verification on oath or affirmation." Two things are mandatory:

1. The signer signs the document in the notary's presence.
2. The signer takes an oath or affirmation that the contents are true.

The certificate reads "subscribed and sworn (or affirmed) before me." Affidavits and depositions use jurats. Because the signer swears to truthfulness, a false statement exposes them to perjury liability—this is the practical difference from an acknowledgment.

Oaths and Affirmations

An oath is a solemn pledge invoking a higher power; an affirmation is the same pledge with no religious reference. They have identical legal effect, and the signer chooses which to use.

Witnessing/Attesting, Copy Certification, and Verification of Fact

Witnessing or attesting a signature simply confirms the notary watched the person sign—no oath, no acknowledgment of willingness. Copy certification lets the notary attest that a photocopy is a true reproduction of an original presented to them. Verification of fact confirms a fact found in a public record (rare in NJ practice).

Documents a NJ notary may NOT copy-certify:

• Birth, death, and marriage certificates and other vital records (only the issuing agency may certify these)
• Court records and any record the custodian or law prohibits copying

Worked Example: Choosing the Right Act

A client brings a sworn affidavit stating his car was stolen. He has not yet signed it. The correct act is a jurat: he must sign in your presence and you administer an oath or affirmation that the statement is true. If instead he brought a deed he signed last week and wants it recorded, the correct act is an acknowledgment: he personally appears, you confirm identity, and he acknowledges the prior signature was his and willing—no oath, and signing in your presence is not required. Picking the wrong act is the single most common error on the exam, because the document title ("affidavit" vs. "deed") signals which act applies.

Reading the Certificate Wording

The pre-printed certificate usually tells you the act. Match the phrase to the act:

If a document has no certificate, the notary may not select or change the act for the signer—the signer or document determines it, and the notary may decline if unsure.

Common Traps

• Jurat vs. acknowledgment: Only the jurat needs signing-in-presence and an oath. Acknowledgments need neither.
• Oath vs. affirmation: Identical legal effect and identical perjury exposure—the only difference is the religious reference.
• Copy certification of vital records: Always prohibited; only the issuing agency may certify a birth, death, or marriage certificate.
• Notarizing your own signature or document: Prohibited—a notary may never notarize a record in which the notary is a party or has a direct beneficial interest.
• Fee: The cap is $2.50 per act; a notary may charge less or nothing but never more, except the $15 real-estate transfer set and $25 mortgage set per transaction.

Fees and Exam Focus

The maximum fee is $2.50 per act, with per-transaction caps of $15 for a real-estate transfer set and $25 for a mortgage set. Expect 4–6 questions here. The classic trap pairs a jurat fact pattern ("signer must swear AND sign in your presence") against an acknowledgment ("willing signature, no oath, may be pre-signed"). A second reliable trap asks which document cannot be copy-certified—the answer is always a vital record.