What Does A Notary Public Do?
If you tell someone that you are a notary public, you can
often expect that he or she will nod knowingly, as if fully aware of what that
means. However, most people know only that a notary is "someone who stamps
documents." Why those documents are stamped and what is involved in the
process is not as well-known by the general public. Some people will admit that
they don't know and will come right out and ask you, "What does a notary
public do?" To answer that question, you have to first understand what a
notary public IS.
A notary public is an official witness to the free and
willing signing of one or more documents by one or more people whose identity
the notary has verified. In most cases, the document is signed in the notary's
presence; in some cases, it is signed first and then brought to the notary
public by the signer, who will then acknowledge to the notary that he or she
signed it.
