Chapter 1 of 526% of exam

Notarial Acts and Certificates

The acts a Montana notary is authorized to perform under the Revised Uniform Law on Notarial Acts (MCA Title 1, ch. 5), how they differ, and what every certificate must contain.

The acts a Montana notary may perform

Montana notaries take acknowledgments, administer oaths and affirmations, perform verifications on oath or affirmation (jurats), witness or attest signatures, and certify or attest copies. Each act has its own purpose, and the notary must know which one a document calls for without choosing it for the signer.

An acknowledgment certifies that the identified signer appeared and acknowledged signing voluntarily for the document's stated purpose.

A verification on oath or affirmation (jurat) certifies that the signer appeared, signed in the notary's presence, and swore or affirmed the statement is true.

The notary may not decide which act a document requires; that is the unauthorized practice of law.

Every act requires the signer's personal appearance before the notary.

Acknowledgment vs. jurat

Confusing these two is the most common notarial error. The oath and the presence-at-signing requirement are what set them apart.

A jurat requires an oath or affirmation; an acknowledgment does not.

For a jurat the signer must sign in front of the notary; for an acknowledgment the signature may already exist.

An oath and an affirmation carry the same legal weight and the same penalty for false statements; only the wording differs.

The notary certifies identity and, for a jurat, that an oath was given, never the truth of the contents beyond the signer's sworn word.

Copy certifications and refusals

Montana notaries can certify copies, but not of records another official is charged with keeping. Knowing when to refuse protects the public and the notary.

A notary may certify a copy the custodian presents, but not vital records (birth, death, marriage) or already-recorded government documents.

Refuse when the signer does not personally appear or cannot be identified.

Refuse when the signer appears confused, unwilling, or coerced.

A notary may notarize a foreign-language document only if able to communicate directly with the signer and identify them.

The notarial certificate

The certificate is the notary's official statement of what was done. Montana law fixes its required elements.

State the venue: the state and county where the act was performed.

State the date of the act and the notary's signature exactly as commissioned.

Affix the official stamp so it is legible and reproducible.

Montana does not require a thumbprint; a notary never records a signer's Social Security number.

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