CT Notary Notary Journal and Record Keeping 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Under Connecticut law, keeping a notary journal is:
- Not required by statute, but strongly recommended as a best practice (Correct answer)
- Required for all notarial acts without exception
- Required only for real estate documents
- Prohibited due to privacy laws
Correct answer: Not required by statute, but strongly recommended as a best practice
Connecticut statutes do not mandate a journal for traditional notarizations, but maintaining one is a widely recommended best practice.
Question 2: A Connecticut notary's employer paid for the notary's journal. When the notary resigns, who has the right to keep the journal?
- The notary, because the journal is the notary's personal record (Correct answer)
- The employer, because it paid for the journal
- The Secretary of the State
- The town clerk where the notary was sworn in
Correct answer: The notary, because the journal is the notary's personal record
A notary journal belongs to the notary personally regardless of who purchased it, because it records the notary's official acts.
Question 3: Which physical format is recommended for a notary journal to deter tampering?
- A bound book with consecutively numbered pages (Correct answer)
- A loose-leaf binder so pages can be reorganized
- Sticky notes stored in an envelope
- A stack of index cards sorted by client
Correct answer: A bound book with consecutively numbered pages
A bound journal with numbered pages makes it obvious if any page is removed or altered.
Question 4: Which of the following pieces of information is most appropriate to record in a journal entry?
- The type of notarial act performed and the date it was performed (Correct answer)
- The signer's full Social Security number
- The signer's bank account balance
- The complete text of the notarized document
Correct answer: The type of notarial act performed and the date it was performed
Journals should record the act, date, document type, signer identity, and ID method, never sensitive data like full Social Security numbers.
Question 5: A notary makes an error while writing a journal entry. What is the correct way to fix it?
- Draw a single line through the error, write the correction, and initial it (Correct answer)
- Erase the error completely so the entry looks clean
- Use correction fluid to cover the mistake
- Tear out the page and rewrite the whole entry
Correct answer: Draw a single line through the error, write the correction, and initial it
Corrections should be made with a single line-through and initials so the original entry remains legible and the record stays trustworthy.
Question 6: Why should a journal entry be completed at the time of the notarization rather than at the end of the day?
- A contemporaneous record is more accurate and more credible as evidence (Correct answer)
- Connecticut fines notaries who batch their entries
- Ink dries faster in the morning
- Signers are legally required to watch the entry being written
Correct answer: A contemporaneous record is more accurate and more credible as evidence
Entries made at the time of the act are more reliable and carry greater evidentiary weight if the notarization is later challenged.
Question 7: A signer asks the notary to skip the journal entry because he is in a hurry. What should the notary do?
- Complete the journal entry anyway, since record keeping is part of the notary's own procedure (Correct answer)
- Skip the entry this one time as a courtesy
- Notarize now and invent the entry details next week
- Refuse to ever notarize for that signer again
Correct answer: Complete the journal entry anyway, since record keeping is part of the notary's own procedure
The journal is the notary's protective record, and the notary, not the signer, controls whether an entry is made.
CT Notary Notary Journal and Record Keeping 2
Under Connecticut law, keeping a notary journal is: