Montana Notary Public — All Questions

When a Montana notary takes an acknowledgment, what is the signer confirming?

• a.That every statement in the document is true and correct
• b.That the signer is the person named in the document and signed it voluntarily for its stated purpose✓
• c.That the notary has read and approved the document's legal effect
• d.That the document has been recorded with the county clerk

In an acknowledgment the signer appears before the notary, is identified, and acknowledges that they signed the document freely for the purpose it states. The notary certifies identity and voluntary execution, not the truthfulness of the contents (that is a jurat) and never the document's legal effect.MCA Title 1, ch. 5 (Montana RULONA); Montana Notary Public Handbook

What does a Montana jurat (verification on oath or affirmation) require that an acknowledgment does not?

• a.The document must be a real-property deed
• b.Two credible witnesses must be present
• c.The signer must sign in the notary's presence and swear or affirm the statement is true✓
• d.The notary must keep the original document

A jurat, called a verification on oath or affirmation under Montana's Revised Uniform Law on Notarial Acts, requires the signer to sign in front of the notary and to swear or affirm the truth of the statement. An acknowledgment requires neither an oath nor signing in the notary's presence.MCA Title 1, ch. 5 (Montana RULONA); Montana Notary Public Handbook

A signer brings a document with no notarial certificate wording and asks the notary, 'Which one do I need?' What should the Montana notary do?

• a.Ask the signer or the document's issuer which act is required, because choosing it for them is the unauthorized practice of law✓
• b.Select an acknowledgment because it is the most common act
• c.Refuse all service until the signer hires an attorney
• d.Perform a jurat, since it covers every situation

A notary who is not a licensed attorney may not decide which notarial act a document needs, because that is giving legal advice. The notary asks the signer (or directs them to the agency requiring the document) to specify the act, then completes the matching certificate.Montana Notary Public Handbook (MT Secretary of State)

For which act may a Montana notary certify that a copy is a true and accurate reproduction of an original?

• a.A certified copy of a birth or death certificate
• b.A certified copy of a recorded real-property deed
• c.A certified copy of a court judgment
• d.A copy of a document the custodian personally presents that is not a publicly recordable or vital record✓

Montana notaries may certify or attest a copy, but not of records that a public official is charged with keeping, such as vital records (birth, death, marriage) or documents already recorded with a government office. Those must be certified by the official custodian, not a notary.Montana Notary Public Handbook (MT Secretary of State)

A caller asks a Montana notary to notarize a signature by video call while the signer is out of state, for a standard (non-remote) notarization. What is required?

• a.Nothing special; a phone call is enough to confirm identity
• b.The signer must personally appear before the notary, which for remote acts means using an approved audio-video platform under Montana's remote notarization rules✓
• c.The notary may notarize if a family member vouches for the signer
• d.The notary may mail the certificate for the signer to sign later

Every notarial act requires the signer's personal appearance. Montana authorizes remote (webcam) notarization, but only through an approved communication-technology platform with identity proofing and recording, not an ordinary phone or video call. A casual video chat does not satisfy personal appearance.MCA Title 1, ch. 5 (Montana RULONA); Montana Notary Public Handbook

What must every Montana notarial certificate include to be complete?

• a.The venue (state and county), the date, the notary's signature, and the official stamp✓
• b.The signer's Social Security number
• c.A statement that the notary read the document
• d.The signer's thumbprint

A Montana certificate states where the act took place (venue), the date it occurred, the notary's signature exactly as commissioned, and the notary's official stamp. Montana does not require a thumbprint, and a notary never records a signer's Social Security number or attests to having read the document.MCA 1-5-609 (certificate of notarial acts)