“Life is not about expecting, hoping, and wishing; it’s about doing, being, and becoming” – Wise words as we embark on a new year. On behalf of Secretary of State Christi Jacobsen and the staff of the Notary Division, we wish you all a very happy and prosperous 2022.
MONTANA NOTARY CONFERENCE
Join us for the 406 Notary Conference, May 19 – 20 at the Premier Best Western Great Northern Hotel in Helena. Registration is now open. This will be a live-only event – sessions will not be available online either during or after the Conference. Because of the many changes to Montana notary laws and the evolution of online notarizations, we are expecting the biggest crowd ever, so make your reservations soon; if you snooze, you lose.
This year’s conference features a group of the best notary instructors and presenters from around the country and over 60 hours of workshops, classes, and interactive sessions focusing on everything notary – from the basics and fundamentals, to everything RON, as well as in-depth information on running a successful notary business. A list of presenters and session topics can be found on our 406 Notary Conference webpage.
Attendees will be able to fulfill the training requirements for becoming a notary, renewing a commission, or becoming an online notary. If you’ve been thinking about becoming a notary or your commission is due for renewal between April 20, 2022, and May 18, 2023, you can get all the required education credits at this Conference.
HANDLING REPRESENTATIVE CAPACITY SIGNERS
There are many times when notaries are asked to notarize a document that is being signed by an individual other than the person or entity named in the document. Acknowledgments and signatures made by an individual acting on behalf of another person or entity are called acknowledgments or signatures in a representative capacity and the person who is appearing before the notary will be signing on behalf of a business or corporation, a trust, with a Power of Attorney or with some other authorization that allows them to sign for another person or legal entity.
When notarizing a document that is being signed by someone other than the person or entity designated as the principal, the notary must determine: (1) The identity of the person who is actually signing the document; (2) The capacity of the person to sign on behalf of the person or entity; and (3) The authority to sign for that person or entity in this particular transaction.
To determine the capacity of the person signing the document, Montana law requires the notary to have personal knowledge or to see satisfactory evidence of the signer’s capacity. Satisfactory evidence would be the document itself, if it refers to the designated signer by name (this is frequent with business records being signed by company officials); an authorizing document, such as a Power of Attorney, Trust Agreement, probate records, or other legal records; or information on an official government website.
Montana Code Annotated §1-5-610(2) and (5) specify that such notarial certificates must be completed with the name of the person who signed the document, the capacity in which it was signed, and the name of the party or entity on whose behalf it was signed.
Most documents’ notarial certificates do not anticipate that the document will be signed by someone other than the person or entity whose name appears on the document, so the notary has to adjust the preprinted notarial certificate accordingly by inserting the representative capacity information or, with the signer’s permission, substituting the appropriate loose certificate.
Still not sure if you understand representative capacity signings? There’s more information in the Montana Notary Public Handbook and you’ll want to check out the “Mastering Notary Certificates” and “Real World Notarizing” workshops at the 406 Notary Conference webpage.
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