NNA Ethics and Professional Responsibility Questions and Answers

Question 1

A non-attorney Notary is asked by a signer, "Should I get an acknowledgment or a jurat on this power of attorney?" Which of the following is the Notary's most ethical and responsible course of action?

Accepted Answer

Advise the signer to contact the receiving agency or an attorney for guidance.

Answer

A non-attorney Notary must not choose the type of notarial certificate for a signer, as this constitutes the unauthorized practice of law. The Notary may describe the different notarial acts, but the signer must make the choice. The most appropriate action is to refer the signer to the document's receiving agency or an attorney for advice on which notarial act is required.

Question 2

A Notary works for a real estate company and is asked to notarize the signatures of their boss on a sales contract. The Notary's compensation is a fixed hourly wage and they receive no commission or bonus related to the sale. According to the Notary Public Code of Professional Responsibility, which statement is true?

Accepted Answer

The Notary may notarize the signature because they have no direct financial interest in the specific transaction beyond their regular salary.

Answer

The Notary Public Code of Professional Responsibility states that an employed Notary may notarize for their employer as long as the Notary is not a party to the document and does not receive any financial benefit from the transaction other than their regular compensation and the statutory notarial fee. Since the Notary is paid an hourly wage and receives no direct commission from the sale, there is no disqualifying interest.

Question 3

Which of the following actions is a fundamental ethical duty required to uphold the Notary's role as an impartial witness?

Accepted Answer

Screening the signer for willingness and awareness of the transaction.

Answer

A core ethical responsibility of a Notary is to act as a barrier to fraud by carefully screening each signer. This includes ensuring the signer appears willing, aware of the document's significance, and is not acting under coercion or duress. Refusing based on disagreement with a lawful document's content is improper bias. Fees should not be based on document complexity, and keeping copies of documents is a breach of privacy.

Question 4

A Notary who is not an attorney advertises their services in a Spanish-language newspaper. To comply with NNA guidelines and the laws of many states, which of the following is a critical requirement for the advertisement?

Accepted Answer

It must not use the term 'Notario Publico' and must include a disclaimer that the Notary is not an attorney.

Answer

To prevent the unauthorized practice of law and protect consumers, particularly immigrants, many states have strict laws about advertising. The term 'Notario Publico' in many Latin American countries implies the authority of an attorney. Therefore, non-attorney Notaries advertising in other languages must avoid this term and include a specific disclaimer stating they are not licensed to practice law.

Question 5

According to Guiding Principle IX of the Notary Public Code of Professional Responsibility, which of the following is a breach of the Notary's duty to respect signer privacy?

Accepted Answer

Selling a list of clients' names and addresses obtained from the journal to a marketing company.

Answer

Guiding Principle IX explicitly states, 'The Notary shall respect the privacy of each signer and not divulge or use personal or proprietary information disclosed during execution of a notarial act for other than an official purpose.' Selling this information for personal gain, such as to a marketing company, is a clear violation of this ethical duty. While signers should be prevented from seeing other entries, selling data is a more severe and direct breach of using information for a non-official purpose.

NNA - National Notary Association Certification Practice Test

NNA - National Notary Association Certification Practice Test

NNA Ethics and Professional Responsibility Questions and Answers