A MICHIGAN NOTARY PRIMER/REMINDER

Hey Terry, I have very strong feelings about this subject.  A couple years ago, I blogged about back-dating, and overall was very disappointed by the minimal replies from title companies and mortgage brokers!  And to this day, it is one of my more active blogs in terms of viewing, and of course all agreed that fraud of any kind is unacceptable, but I received few replies from the ones I was targeting the most. Couple points of clarification though, which may or may not apply to your state.  In most states, there is a difference between a Jurat and an Acknowledgment and how they are handled.  In all cases, the person must appear before the notary, and I think that is pretty universal in all states, and I am unaware of any state not having this requirement.  But, while the notary must see the person sign the Jurat in front of them, as long as the acknowledgment wording does not specify that the notary see the signing occur, then the person can bring the document already signed, but I would ask them prior to completing such an acknowledgment if they knew what they signed, and understood the document, and signed willingly and freely.  A spouse, friend or anyone else bring the document to me on the signors behalf is also unacceptable, it must be the signor themselves.  The other thing, if a Jurat, an oath must be given, and even if acknowledgment, I always ask about their willingness and that they understand the document.  When a Jurat, the oath is extremely important as it signifies to the signor the importance and ramifications of the truthful statement contained in the document.  Again, I do not know MI laws, but I would imagine what I say here applies to most if not all states.

PS: BTW, I see you commented on my blog about back-dating last September.  :-)

Thank you Terry.  I agree with you 100%!!! 

Ah, a subject that is near and dear to my heart....it is imperative that we continue to remind people of what we can and can't do.  Great Blog!