AK Notary Record-Keeping and Notary Journal 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Under Alaska law, how long must a notary retain their journal after their commission expires?
- 1 year
- 3 years
- 5 years (Correct answer)
- 10 years
Correct answer: 5 years
Alaska requires notaries to retain their journal for 5 years after the expiration of their commission.
Question 2: When a notary performs multiple notarizations for the same signer in a single appointment, how should journal entries be recorded?
- One combined entry for all acts
- A separate entry for each notarial act (Correct answer)
- Only the first and last act need entries
- A single entry with a count of acts performed
Correct answer: A separate entry for each notarial act
Each individual notarial act requires its own separate journal entry, even when performed for the same signer at the same time.
Question 3: A notary discovers their journal is missing. What is the correct first step?
- Continue notarizing without a journal until a new one arrives
- Notify the Lieutenant Governor's office promptly (Correct answer)
- Reconstruct journal entries from memory
- Suspend all notarial duties until a new journal is purchased
Correct answer: Notify the Lieutenant Governor's office promptly
Alaska notaries must promptly notify the Lieutenant Governor's office if their journal is lost, stolen, or destroyed.
Question 4: Which of the following is NOT a required element of a notary journal entry in Alaska?
- Date and time of the notarial act
- The fee charged for the act
- The signer's Social Security Number (Correct answer)
- Type of notarial act performed
Correct answer: The signer's Social Security Number
A signer's Social Security Number is never required in a notary journal; collecting it would be an inappropriate invasion of privacy.
Question 5: A signer requests to inspect a notary's journal entries related to a deed they signed. What should the notary do?
- Allow inspection only of that signer's own entries (Correct answer)
- Deny all access because journals are strictly confidential
- Allow full access to the entire journal
- Require a court order before showing any entries
Correct answer: Allow inspection only of that signer's own entries
A notary may allow a signer to inspect only those journal entries that relate to their own notarizations, not other signers' records.
Question 6: In Alaska, can a notary use a loose-leaf binder as their official notary journal?
- Yes, any format is acceptable
- No, the journal must be a permanently bound book with numbered pages (Correct answer)
- Yes, if pages are numbered
- No, only electronic journals are approved
Correct answer: No, the journal must be a permanently bound book with numbered pages
Alaska requires notary journals to be permanently bound books with numbered pages to prevent tampering or insertion of false entries.
Question 7: What information about the document should be recorded in the journal at the time of notarization?
- The full text of the document
- The type or title of the document being notarized (Correct answer)
- The document's monetary value
- The names of all parties mentioned in the document
Correct answer: The type or title of the document being notarized
The notary records the type or title (e.g., deed, affidavit, power of attorney) of the document, not its full text or all parties named within it.
AK Notary Record-Keeping and Notary Journal 2
Under Alaska law, how long must a notary retain their journal after their commission expires?