1.1 Overview of Notarial Acts

What a Notarial Act Is

A notarial act is any official duty a notary public is authorized to perform under the laws of the commissioning state. Every encounter between a notary and a signer involves at least one act, so identifying the correct one is the first decision in any notarization. The Revised Uniform Law on Notarial Acts (RULONA), the model statute most states draw from, defines a notarial act as "an act, whether performed with respect to a tangible or electronic record, that a notarial officer may perform under the law of this state."

The notary is an impartial witness, not a party to the transaction. The notary does not vouch for the document's legality, give legal advice, or take sides. The notary's job is to deter fraud by verifying who appeared and what they did, then memorializing it in a certificate.

The Acts You Must Know

The specific acts authorized vary by state, but exams concentrate on a short list. Memorize the purpose and the single distinguishing feature of each.

Choosing the Correct Act

The required act is determined by three things, in order of priority:

1. The certificate wording already on the document. Pre-printed language is the strongest signal. "Subscribed and sworn to before me" means a jurat; "personally appeared and acknowledged" means an acknowledgment.
2. The requesting party. The attorney, lender, court, or agency that drafted the document usually specifies the act.
3. State statute. Some records (deeds, deeds of trust) must be acknowledged to be recordable.

Critical rule (heavily tested): the notary must never select the act for the signer. If a document lacks certificate wording and the signer does not know which act is needed, the notary refers the signer back to the issuing party or an attorney. Choosing the act is unauthorized practice of law (UPL) and can lead to commission revocation.

The Notarial Certificate

Every act on a document is recorded in a notarial certificate — the wording attached to or printed within the record. A complete certificate states:

• The venue: the state and county where the act occurred
• The date of the act
• The name of the principal (the signer)
• The type of act performed
• How the signer was identified (personal knowledge, satisfactory evidence, or credible witness)
• The notary's signature, exactly as it appears on the commission
• The notary's official seal or stamp
• The commission expiration date (printed in the seal in many states)

Loose certificates

When a document contains no certificate wording, the notary may attach a separate loose certificate (also called a loose-leaf certificate). Best practice — and statute in many states — requires the loose certificate to (1) be stapled securely to the document, and (2) describe the document by title, date, and page count so it cannot be detached and reattached to a forged record. A notary may not select which loose certificate to use; that is the signer's or drafter's choice, for the same UPL reason above.

Universal Duties Across All Acts

Three requirements apply to essentially every notarization:

Personal appearance

The signer must personally appear before the notary at the moment of the act. For traditional notarizations this means same physical location, face to face. The only exception is Remote Online Notarization (RON), where appearance occurs over live two-way audio-video — a phone call alone never satisfies appearance.

Positive identification

The notary must be reasonably certain of the signer's identity through personal knowledge, a current government-issued photo ID, or one or two credible identifying witnesses, depending on state law.

Willingness and awareness

The notary must be satisfied the signer is acting willingly (free of coercion or duress) and appears mentally aware of the transaction. A signer who seems confused, medicated, or pressured is a stop sign.

When the Act Is Complete

A notarization is not finished until the notary has:

1. Confirmed appearance, identity, willingness, and awareness
2. Performed the act-specific step (administered the oath for a jurat, taken the acknowledgment, etc.)
3. Filled in every blank in the certificate
4. Signed the certificate
5. Affixed the official seal legibly
6. Recorded the act in the journal where required or recommended

On the Exam

Expect several questions on these fundamentals. Anchor points: acknowledgments are the most common act; jurats add an oath and signing in your presence; the notary never chooses the act (UPL); personal appearance is mandatory for traditional acts; and an incomplete certificate (missing date, seal, or signature) invalidates the notarization.