Notary Public Communication & Stakeholder Relations 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A signer appears confused about what document they are signing. What should the notary do?
- Proceed quickly to avoid wasting time
- Explain the notarial act but not the document's legal content (Correct answer)
- Read the entire document aloud to the signer
- Refuse to notarize and report the signer
Correct answer: Explain the notarial act but not the document's legal content
Notaries may clarify the notarial process but must not provide legal advice about the document's contents.
Question 2: When communicating with a principal who has limited English proficiency, a notary should:
- Proceed if the signer nods agreement
- Use an interpreter and document their use in the notarial certificate if permitted (Correct answer)
- Decline to notarize all foreign-language documents
- Require the signer to bring a bilingual attorney
Correct answer: Use an interpreter and document their use in the notarial certificate if permitted
Using a qualified interpreter and noting it in the certificate helps ensure the signer's understanding is documented.
Question 3: A lender's closing agent pressures a notary to skip the identity verification step to save time. The notary should:
- Skip it this once to maintain the business relationship
- Comply since the lender is the client
- Firmly decline and perform all required identity checks (Correct answer)
- Ask the signer to sign a waiver
Correct answer: Firmly decline and perform all required identity checks
Notaries must fulfill all statutory duties regardless of pressure from third-party stakeholders.
Question 4: Which best describes the notary's appropriate communication with signers regarding fees?
- Fees should be discussed only after the notarization is complete
- Notaries should disclose maximum allowable fees before beginning (Correct answer)
- Fees are set by the requesting party and need not be discussed
- Notaries may charge any fee they choose without disclosure
Correct answer: Notaries should disclose maximum allowable fees before beginning
Transparent fee disclosure before notarization prevents disputes and is considered best practice.
Question 5: A title company asks a notary to communicate with the seller on their behalf and pressure them to sign quickly. The notary should:
- Act as the title company's agent and relay the pressure
- Remain neutral and allow the signer adequate time to review (Correct answer)
- Remind the seller that delays cost money
- Refuse to notarize unless the seller agrees to sign immediately
Correct answer: Remain neutral and allow the signer adequate time to review
Notaries must remain impartial and cannot act as advocates for any party to the transaction.
Question 6: When a signer asks a notary to explain whether a contract is fair, the notary should:
- Give a brief opinion since it is helpful
- Explain that providing legal advice is outside a notary's role (Correct answer)
- Recommend signing since most contracts are standard
- Suggest the signer ignore the terms and just sign
Correct answer: Explain that providing legal advice is outside a notary's role
Advising on the fairness or legality of a document constitutes unauthorized practice of law.
Question 7: A notary is performing a remote online notarization and the audio connection is poor. The correct action is to:
- Continue and note the audio issue in the journal
- Pause and resolve the audio issue before proceeding (Correct answer)
- Have the signer type responses in the chat instead
- Complete the session and correct errors afterward
Correct answer: Pause and resolve the audio issue before proceeding
Clear, uninterrupted two-way audio-visual communication is required for a valid remote online notarization.
Notary Public Communication & Stakeholder Relations 2
A signer appears confused about what document they are signing.
What should the notary do?