WV Notary Notarial Acts and Procedures 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A signer objects to swearing an oath for religious reasons. The West Virginia notary should:
- Offer an affirmation, which has the same legal effect without religious reference (Correct answer)
- Refuse to perform the notarization
- Perform the jurat without any oath or affirmation
- Require the signer to find a different notary
Correct answer: Offer an affirmation, which has the same legal effect without religious reference
An affirmation is a legally equivalent, secular alternative to an oath.
Question 2: Which document copy may a West Virginia notary generally NOT certify?
- A birth certificate or other publicly recorded vital record (Correct answer)
- A private letter the requester owns
- A diploma presented by its holder
- A personal contract between two businesses
Correct answer: A birth certificate or other publicly recorded vital record
Copies of vital records and other publicly recordable documents must be certified by the official custodian, not a notary.
Question 3: During a notarization, the notary realizes the signer appears confused and cannot explain what the document is. The notary should:
- Decline to notarize because the signer does not appear to understand the transaction (Correct answer)
- Proceed, since judging awareness is not the notary's job
- Ask a family member to confirm the signer's intent and proceed
- Notarize but add a note about the signer's confusion
Correct answer: Decline to notarize because the signer does not appear to understand the transaction
A notary must refuse when the signer does not appear competent or aware of what they are signing.
Question 4: A pre-printed certificate on a document says 'Subscribed and sworn to before me.' This wording tells the West Virginia notary that the required act is:
- A jurat (verification on oath or affirmation) (Correct answer)
- An acknowledgment
- A copy certification
- A protest of a negotiable instrument
Correct answer: A jurat (verification on oath or affirmation)
'Subscribed and sworn to' is the classic jurat language, requiring signing in the notary's presence and an oath.
Question 5: If a document has no notarial certificate at all, the West Virginia notary should:
- Ask the signer which act is required and attach the corresponding certificate, without advising which to choose (Correct answer)
- Choose the certificate the notary thinks is best for the signer
- Notarize by simply signing and sealing the last page
- Refuse, since documents without certificates can never be notarized
Correct answer: Ask the signer which act is required and attach the corresponding certificate, without advising which to choose
The signer (or the issuing/receiving agency) must select the notarial act; the notary may then attach a loose certificate but may not choose for them.
Question 6: A West Virginia notary performs an acknowledgment for an attorney-in-fact signing under a power of attorney. The certificate should reflect that the person acknowledged signing:
- In a representative capacity on behalf of the principal (Correct answer)
- As an individual with no reference to the principal
- As a credible witness for the principal
- Jointly with the notary as co-signer
Correct answer: In a representative capacity on behalf of the principal
When someone signs under a power of attorney, the certificate must show the representative capacity in which they acknowledged the signature.
Question 7: Which of the following errors would make a notarial certificate defective?
- The notary forgot to sign the certificate (Correct answer)
- The venue lists the county where the act occurred
- The date matches the day of notarization
- The signer's name matches the ID presented
Correct answer: The notary forgot to sign the certificate
A certificate without the notary's signature is incomplete and invalid.
WV Notary Notarial Acts and Procedures 3
A signer objects to swearing an oath for religious reasons.
The West Virginia notary should: