3.3 Witnessing or Attesting a Signature

What Witnessing or Attesting a Signature Is

Witnessing or attesting a signature is one of the notarial acts authorized under RULONA, 57 Pa.C.S. Chapter 3. In this act, the notary personally observes the individual sign the record and certifies that the signing occurred before the notary. It is used when a party simply needs official proof that a particular person signed a document, without swearing to its truth.

When witnessing a signature, the notary must determine, from personal knowledge or satisfactory evidence, that (1) the individual appearing has the identity claimed, and (2) that individual signs the record in the notary's presence. The notary attests to having watched the signature being made.

The Defining Feature: Watch the Signing, No Oath

Witnessing sits between the other two acts on the "presence" spectrum:

• Like a verification, the signer must sign in front of the notary (pre-signing is not allowed).
• Unlike a verification, no oath or affirmation is administered - the signer makes no sworn declaration about truth.
• Unlike an acknowledgment, the signer cannot present a pre-signed document; the actual act of signing must be observed.

When Witnessing Is Used

Signature witnessing is appropriate when a recipient (a bank, a court, a foreign authority, or a private party) wants assurance that this exact person physically signed, but no recording-style acknowledgment or sworn affidavit is needed. Examples include certain financial forms, applications, and documents whose own instructions direct the notary to "witness" the signature.

Procedure

1. Personal appearance - the signer must be before the notary.
2. Identify the signer (personal knowledge, satisfactory evidence, or credible witness).
3. Observe the signing - the signer must sign the record while the notary watches. Do not accept a document already signed.
4. Complete the certificate, sign, date, and stamp. No oath is given. Maximum PA fee is $5 per signature.

RULONA Short-Form Certificate

Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, County of __________

Signed (or attested) before me on __________ (date) by __________ (name(s) of individual(s)).

[Notary signature] [Official stamp] [Title] [Commission expiration]

The phrase "Signed (or attested) before me" - without the words "sworn" or "acknowledged" - is the textual marker that distinguishes a witnessing certificate from the other two acts.

Distinguishing the Three Presence-Based Acts

• Acknowledgment - signer confirms a signature (may be pre-signed); no oath.
• Witnessing - notary watches the signing happen; no oath.
• Verification on oath - notary watches the signing happen and administers an oath about the statement's truth.

Why Witnessing Exists Separately

Witnessing a signature fills a specific gap. Sometimes a party does not need the formality of a recordable acknowledgment, and the document contains no sworn statement to verify, yet the recipient still wants official assurance that this person, identified by the notary, physically executed the document at this time and place. Witnessing supplies exactly that and nothing more. Because the notary observes the live signing, the act provides strong evidence against later claims of forgery, even though the signer never swears to anything.

The word attest in "witnessing or attesting" is simply an alternative term for the same act; some documents say "attested" rather than "witnessed." Either way the notary's obligation is identical: identify the signer and watch the signature being made.

Reading the Certificate to Identify the Act

On the exam you can often identify which act occurred just from the certificate's verb. "Acknowledged before me" means an acknowledgment (no oath, pre-signing allowed). "Signed and sworn to (or affirmed) before me" means a verification on oath (oath given, signed in presence). "Signed (or attested) before me" means witnessing (signed in presence, no oath). Memorizing these three verb signatures is one of the fastest ways to answer act-identification questions correctly.

Common Exam Traps

• Witnessing requires the notary to see the signature made - a pre-signed document is not acceptable (that is an acknowledgment).
• No oath is administered - adding one would make it a verification, not a witnessing.
• The certificate uses "signed (or attested)," never "sworn" or "acknowledged."
• "Attesting" a signature is the same act as "witnessing" - do not confuse it with "attesting a copy," which is the unrelated copy-certification act.

Handling Marks, Multiple Signers, and Refusals

Because witnessing turns entirely on observing the signing, the notary must give it full attention while the pen is on the page. If a signer cannot write and makes a mark (such as an X), the notary still watches the mark being made and may follow Pennsylvania's signature-by-mark practice, typically with two disinterested witnesses also observing. When several people must sign the same record, each signature is a separate act; the maximum $5 fee applies per signature witnessed.

And, exactly as with the other acts in this chapter, the notary must refuse if the signer is not personally present, cannot be identified, or appears to be signing under duress or without understanding. The notary never signs the document itself - the notary only observes the signer's signature and then completes the separate notarial certificate that attests to that observation.