AZ Notary Prohibited Acts & Conflicts of Interest 4 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: An Arizona notary is asked to notarize a deed transferring property to a corporation in which the notary holds a 30% ownership stake. What must the notary do?
- Notarize after disclosing the interest to both parties
- Decline to notarize because of a direct financial interest (Correct answer)
- Notarize only if a supervising attorney is present
- Notarize because the interest is in a corporation, not personal
Correct answer: Decline to notarize because of a direct financial interest
Arizona law prohibits a notary from notarizing a document when the notary has a direct financial or beneficial interest in the transaction.
Question 2: Which of the following actions is PROHIBITED for an Arizona notary public?
- Charging a fee for notarization services
- Advertising notary services in Spanish without a disclaimer (Correct answer)
- Notarizing documents for family members when no financial interest exists
- Administering oaths for affidavits
Correct answer: Advertising notary services in Spanish without a disclaimer
Arizona law requires that notaries who advertise in a language other than English and are not attorneys must include a disclaimer stating they are not attorneys and cannot give legal advice.
Question 3: A notary's employer instructs the notary to notarize a document without the signer being personally present. The notary should:
- Comply because employers have authority over notary acts
- Refuse, as personal appearance is required regardless of employer instructions (Correct answer)
- Comply only if the signer is a known customer of the business
- Comply if the document is a business record rather than a legal instrument
Correct answer: Refuse, as personal appearance is required regardless of employer instructions
An employer cannot override Arizona's legal requirement that signers appear personally before the notary at the time of notarization.
Question 4: Under Arizona law, a notary who is also an attorney-in-fact for a principal may notarize documents signed by that principal:
- Only if the notary does not benefit financially from the transaction
- Never, because acting as attorney-in-fact creates a direct interest (Correct answer)
- Only with written consent from the principal
- Freely, because the principal granted the authority
Correct answer: Never, because acting as attorney-in-fact creates a direct interest
Serving as attorney-in-fact creates a legal relationship that constitutes a disqualifying interest, prohibiting the notary from also notarizing the principal's documents.
Question 5: An Arizona notary stamps a document with an expired notarial seal. This act is best described as:
- Permissible if the commission has been renewed
- A prohibited act that could result in commission revocation (Correct answer)
- Acceptable if the expiration was within the prior 30 days
- Only a civil matter with no administrative consequences
Correct answer: A prohibited act that could result in commission revocation
Using an expired seal constitutes a prohibited notarial act under Arizona law and can result in administrative penalties including revocation of the notary commission.
Question 6: A notary is asked to certify a copy of a U.S. passport. Under Arizona law, the notary:
- May certify the copy as a standard certified copy notarization
- May not certify copies of vital records or passports (Correct answer)
- Must first obtain approval from the Secretary of State
- May certify the copy only if the requester is present
Correct answer: May not certify copies of vital records or passports
Arizona notaries are prohibited from certifying copies of vital records, passports, and other government-issued identification documents.
Question 7: Which scenario represents a PROHIBITED conflict of interest for an Arizona notary?
- Notarizing a contract between two strangers at a title company
- Notarizing a loan document where the notary is also the named borrower (Correct answer)
- Notarizing a will for an individual who is unrelated to the notary
- Notarizing an affidavit for a coworker in a different department
Correct answer: Notarizing a loan document where the notary is also the named borrower
A notary who is a named party in a document—such as a borrower on a loan—has a direct financial interest and is prohibited from notarizing that document.
AZ Notary Prohibited Acts & Conflicts of Interest 4
An Arizona notary is asked to notarize a deed transferring property to a corporation in which the notary holds a 30% ownership stake.
What must the notary do?