GA Notary Ethical Considerations and Responsibilities 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A signer asks the Georgia notary to explain whether the contract they are signing is legally enforceable. What must the notary do?
- Provide a brief summary since the notary must help signers understand
- Refuse to give legal advice, as doing so constitutes unauthorized practice of law (Correct answer)
- Direct the signer to a Georgia Bar-approved website
- Explain the document only if the notary has legal training
Correct answer: Refuse to give legal advice, as doing so constitutes unauthorized practice of law
Georgia notaries who are not licensed attorneys are prohibited from providing legal advice, including opinions on document enforceability.
Question 2: Which scenario represents an acceptable reason for a Georgia notary to refuse a notarial act?
- The signer speaks only Spanish and an interpreter is present
- The signer is a convicted felon
- The notary reasonably believes the document will be used for fraud (Correct answer)
- The signer cannot read the document themselves
Correct answer: The notary reasonably believes the document will be used for fraud
A notary has both the right and duty to refuse any act they reasonably believe will facilitate fraud or illegal activity.
Question 3: A notary's employer instructs the notary to notarize documents without verifying signers' identities to speed up processing. What should the notary do?
- Comply since employers have authority over notaries
- Refuse, because identity verification is a non-delegable legal duty of the notary (Correct answer)
- Comply only for repeat customers whose identity is already on file
- Ask a supervisor to sign off on the waiver
Correct answer: Refuse, because identity verification is a non-delegable legal duty of the notary
The duty to verify signer identity rests solely with the notary and cannot be waived or delegated at an employer's direction.
Question 4: What is the ethical obligation of a Georgia notary when a signer presents an expired government-issued ID?
- Accept it if the photo is a clear likeness
- Reject it and require a current, valid form of identification (Correct answer)
- Accept it if supplemented by a second form of expired ID
- Accept it for documents under a certain dollar value
Correct answer: Reject it and require a current, valid form of identification
Acceptable identification must be current and unexpired; an expired ID does not meet Georgia's notarial identification standards.
Question 5: A notary is asked to notarize a blank or incomplete document. What is the correct ethical response?
- Notarize it and note 'incomplete' in the journal
- Refuse until the document is complete (Correct answer)
- Notarize only the sections that are filled in
- Notarize it if the signer promises to complete it afterward
Correct answer: Refuse until the document is complete
Notarizing incomplete documents creates risk of fraud since blank spaces could be filled in after the notarial act.
Question 6: A Georgia notary is pressured by a closing attorney to back-date a notarization to meet a contract deadline. What must the notary do?
- Comply if the attorney takes full legal responsibility in writing
- Refuse, because backdating is a criminal falsification of public records (Correct answer)
- Comply only if the signing actually occurred on the backdated date
- Refuse unless the parties consent to backdating
Correct answer: Refuse, because backdating is a criminal falsification of public records
Backdating a notarization is fraud and a criminal offense regardless of who applies pressure or what reason is given.
Question 7: What ethical rule applies when a Georgia notary is asked to notarize their own signature on a document?
- It is permissible if a witness is present
- It is never permissible; a notary cannot notarize their own signature (Correct answer)
- It is permissible on self-prepared affidavits only
- It is permissible with prior written authorization from the Georgia Secretary of State
Correct answer: It is never permissible; a notary cannot notarize their own signature
Self-notarization is void because a notary cannot serve as both the signer and the disinterested certifying officer.
GA Notary Ethical Considerations and Responsibilities 3
A signer asks the Georgia notary to explain whether the contract they are signing is legally enforceable.
What must the notary do?