Get a “Bottom Line” Mobile Notary Fee

“Are there any other fees or charges?” is a common question when I quote a price for my mobile notary, fingerprinting, or Apostille/Legalization services. My standard reply is “I don’t like to get or to give surprises”. It seems that some notaries are advertising in a “bait and switch” manner, adding fees and surcharges to a low starting number. I consider that deceptive. When I quote a price for services, based on your stated requirements, that’s the price – unless the requirements change. I am one of the very few A+ rated notaries with the Better Business Bureau of New York, (I know of no other). http://kenneth-a-edelstein.com is dedicated to the highest standards of ethics and I maintain a very pro-consumer business policy.

Some are very creative with the “add ons”. I receive regular feedback from many clients about the “games” some play. Sometimes it’s humorous, “that is outside of my basic area”, my new client was told. “What is the basic area”, they asked. Silence, was the reply! Another common deception is to “not mention” that the return delivery of the Apostille incurs an additional “trip” fee, or having a high premium for same day service. I appreciate clients meeting me at the time scheduled, but I don’t charge a dollar a minute for a short wait, as some others do. It is my standard policy to suggest a duplicate, where practical, also be notarized; an official, original, backup copy. I make no additional charge and routinely request my client to have a copy ready for me to also notarize. It takes me little extra time to process and adds value to my visit.

As a http://newyorkmobilenotarypublic.com I meet many people. The vast majority are very honest. However, most are New Yorkers’ and tend to be wary of new business relationships. They are my most favorite prospective new clients. I invite them to compare my web site with the various alternatives. Most other sites give very little, if any, information about the key person, the notary who will actually be going to you. My site gives my real name, home address, and a host of “clickable” verifiable links, to a variety of information about me. I also provide, in place of hammering, mind numbing, sales pitches; a variety of useful information. I do the same with phone calls; stopping at the point where I am being asked for “legal advice”. I am not an attorney, and not qualified, or permitted, to give legal advice.

It’s always wise to ask, very firmly, for the “bottom line”; the “what must I pay” amount. Ask if there are any additional charges whatsoever. Of course, you must describe the job accurately. I have arrived at a “just one item to notarize” and been presented 17 “copies” – to also notarize. Be aware that the majority of the mobile notary’s time is spent in transit. I might be at your location for only ten minutes, but it can take over an hour to get to you. If you make many calls and ask “How much is a Notary?”, I can almost guarantee you that the lowest response will never be what you are asked to pay. There is also the issue of quality. Quality of service can vary from the professional service with proper supplies to handle virtually any situation. Ask about a variety of forms, sizes of notary stamps, embossers, a FedEx account, an on-line credit card acceptance (to keep your credit card information secure), etc. At the other end of the scale is the disorganized amateur, with a last 2 digits of the year shaved off, worn out stamp – and who, upon their (late) arrival, will ask to borrow your pen!

Notary must officiate on request.

That is not only rude, impolite and bad business; it’s also illegal. On my web site there is a link for Notary Laws and Procedures. At http://newyorkmobilenotarypublic.com that link leads to a direct link to the official notary law for New York State. Under Section 195 “Official Misconduct” which is defined as a “Class A Misdemeanor” it states: Notary must officiate on request.

The Penal Law (§195.00) provides that an officer before whom an oath or affidavit may be taken is bound to administer the same when requested, and a refusal to do so is a misdemeanor. 

Thus, it is illegal for a Notary Public to refuse to notarize a document when requested. There are some practical limitations to the requirement. You certainly cannot demand entrance to a private residence to see a notary; no rule requires that the notary permit you into their home. It is generally viewed as applicable to “places of public accommodation”, such as a bank, law office, or pharmacy. You probably would not be able to disrupt someone’s lunch break. But the flat out refusal because you are not a “customer” is totally improper. If you run into this situation; print out a copy of the law from my site, and remind the reticent notary that they took an oath to uphold the notary laws of New York State – and criminal penalties apply to lawbreakers.

There is a practical side to public places. You generally have to wait your turn, sometimes in a very long line. “Walk In” notaries are not always available at your convenience. Some are only available on certain days and / or times of the day. Their primary job certainly takes precedence over their secondary accommodation of providing notary services. It’s a good idea for you to find out what day / time the “walk in” notary will be available. When http://kenneth-a-edelstein.com goes to you – at the place and time that suits you best; there is absolutely no wait. In fact, generally arriving a few minutes early, I check my email while waiting for you to become available. If you arrive with a complete “loan package” and require 43 notarizations; I doubt if you would be accommodated. Even the New York County Clerk will not process a large number of notarizations for an individual – it is too disruptive to the others waiting on line for service. It’s different when you have an appointment and the notary can allocate sufficient time for your processing.

There are some gray areas related to what a notary will process. Some notaries refuse to do Powers of Attorney, or documents in a Foreign Language. Banks typically refuse both. The former, they see as an exposure of the bank to possible litigation. The latter, I can only guess, is fear of the unknown. There is no legal requirement for me to be able to read the document. I only need to be able to administer the notary oath to the person signing in English, the only language I know. It is not permitted to administer the oath via an interpreter. There are probably other “cases” – but the general law is inflexible. The notary must accommodate your request as long as it is, in the notary’s opinion lawful. That includes proper date, lack of blank spaces, proper ID, etc.

Notarizing Foreign Language Documents

“The bank refused to notarize the document because it is written in Hungarian”

Said the exasperated client to me. “No Problem” for Kenneth A. Edelstein was my reply. There is no requirement for the notary to be able to read the document, none whatsoever. Consider a 765 page document regarding the sale of a Supertanker – do you think the notary will read it prior to notarizing the signature on the last page? Well, if they are not going to read all pages of all documents – why would they want to be able to read some pages of some documents? I doubt if I will ever know.

There are some interesting considerations regarding languages involved in the notarization process. But none have anything to do with the actual document. The main language requirements are related to the required oath given by the notary. The notary must be able to give the oath directly (no interpreter allowed) to the person whose signature will be notarized. The person signing must be able to read the document in order to swear/affirm that the document is truthful/correct. That is the relevant language consideration – the document could be in Braille or Latvian – it does not matter to me.

Part of some notaries’ refusal to handle this situation is their employer’s desire to avoid the possibility of being involved in a lawsuit. Some banks will not notarize a Power of Attorney, some refuse a Bill of Sale – the reasons are the same; avoiding being involved in litigation. If the notary can’t read any of the document it “might” be a prohibited (by “bank” policy) – thus all “unreadable” documents are often refused. At New York Mobile Notary Public that is never the case. While the notary has no requirement to read the document – if – at a glance – the document is “improper” – for example a contract to commit a crime; all notaries should refuse to notarize. However, there is NO requirement for the notary to determine that the document is lawful.

It is a “best practice” to prepare foreign language documents in both languages. Most times this is done by formatting the document into two columns with English on one side and the other language on the other. One advantage of doing this is that it allows the affiant to sign twice. The signature on the English side will be compared to their ID – the other language is not. Thus, it is the English signature that is being notarized – and most ID documents in this country have English signatures. However, I personally would accept a Chinese signature if it matched the signature on a Chinese passport and the picture of the passport holder looked like the person signing the document in front of me.

Why you need an Apostille

Why you need an Apostille

We all know what it means to have a document notarized. The notary, a sworn independent officer of the state verifies your signature and identity documents. The notary then proceeds to place the notary stamp and embosser on the document. At this point, your signature has been verified and your document is, after the notary oath, considered notarized. But, there is the reason for an Apostille: considered notarized by whom? If the stamp of the notary is unknown to the receiver of the document, it adds little value. I, Kenneth A Edelstein have notarized thousands of documents. Most are for use in the USA and my notary stamp + raised seal is all that is required for the document to be considered notarized.

It’s a very different case when the document leaves the USA. Foreign officials are not familiar with the notary stamps and seals of American notaries. They certainly would have an especially difficult time if verification of the notary’s commission and status were required. Add the possibility that the document is going to a non-English speaking country; the “good in the USA” notarization would be worthless. It might be viewed as a “tax stamp”. Clearly there is a need for a notarization to be recognized on a global scale. That is exactly the purpose of the Apostille.

The Apostille, a standard document added to a notarization provides a common format, and verbiage, for the global acceptance of notary functions. It’s not just for documents leaving the USA for France. It works both ways: an Apostille bearing document originating in France is accepted in the USA – exactly as if the signature had been notarized in Manhattan. The French government is “on record” as having authenticated the validity of the Parisian notary. There is no need to be able to research – or even read the notarization done in French.

As a New York Mobile Notary Public – I process and obtain Apostilles frequently. There are two formats, loosely referred to by the inclusive term: Apostille. The more common is the true “Apostille” – issued by and for signatory nations of Article 12 of The Hague Convention. This agreement is in place to facilitate the international flow of personal, compared to business documents.  For business documents, a more complex and costly procedure: Embassy / Consulate Legalization is often required. Non-signatory nations receive a “Certification” – often serving the same purpose, but sometimes not. Some non-signatory nations still require Legalization for personal documents such as: Birth Certificates, School Documents, Marriage Documents, etc.

Notarization is a Serious Process

It’s a popular misconception that Notarization is a trivial process. This paper will ignore the issue of improperly processed (by the notary) notarizations, and address the issue of what it really means to have your signature notarized. I http://kenneth-a-edelstein.com will work with the assumption that the notarization is done legally and properly. Speaking only for New York State, the notary is a Commissioned and sworn officer of the New York State Department of State. That means the notary has taken a legal oath to uphold, and follow, the laws of New York in discharging their duties. It is the responsibility of the notary to be aware of, and follow changing regulations and procedures.

As an “officer of the State”, the notary administers an oath to persons whose signatures they will notarize. There are several formats, but the concept is the same – you are “under oath” to tell the truth. But what if you are not telling the truth? When I ask “Do you acknowledge that this is your signature, that you understood and willfully signed this document, and that the statements are true and accurate to the best of your knowledge and belief”, it’s an official question. A positive reply allows me to add my credentials and signature to the document. Then the document is considered to have a notarized signature.

A false statement under oath to a notary public is exactly the same as a false statement in a courtroom after being sworn by the Bailiff of the Court. It is the crime of Perjury, lying under oath. As a http://newyorkmobilenotarypublic.com I pass no judgment on the content of the document – you are the one testifying as to your belief and understanding of the document’s truthfulness. My responsibility is to verify your identity, to a reasonable extent. A well forged driver’s license will fool many Police Officers in addition to fooling a notary public.

Thus, the notarized document is a sworn statement by the affiant who signed the document. Such documents are generally permitted to be presented in a court of law – without the need for the affiant to be present to identify and testify as to having signed the document. It is the impartial notary’s signature and seal that lends validity to the signature (not the content of the document). Consider carefully your response to the notary’s question when giving you the oath. You are “going on record” by your signature, it would be difficult later to say “I did not sign that”.

Protect Yourself from Shoddy Notarizations

I see it ever day. Shoddy “half” notarizations being done by notaries who either don’t know proper procedures or just wish to save themselves a moment of time. However, the damage such improper work can cause is hard to assess. I doubt if it’s a case of “don’t know” as all notaries in New York State are required to pass an exam to obtain their commission. You can find a copy of the notary law on my web site New York Mobile Notary Public probably worth reading if you have many documents notarized; or if your documents are important.

The most common partial notarization merely consists of the notary using their rubber stamp and signing the paper. That is NOT a notarization. To the untrained eye it looks like a notarization – but it certainly does not follow the requirements for a proper notarization. A properly notarized document has statements and signatures from BOTH you – and the notary. You need to make a statement, not just sign your name. The notary must also make a statement, in addition to signing the form.

It is also REQUIRED that the “venue” – the State and County where the notarization took place; be clearly stated on the document – usually at the top of the page (or above the notary stamp). This is one of the most frequently overlooked aspects of notarization. In addition to using the rubber stamp, the notary should emboss (use the raised seal) for any documents that might be going out of New York State. It’s a good practice for the notary to emboss every time.

The notary statement should include the date and the name of the affiant (the persons whose signature is being notarized) and the “type” of notarization service performed. Common types include the “acknowledgement” and the “sworn to and subscribed” formats. As a New York State notary, Kenneth A Edelstein is often asked to process documents that have already been notarized to obtain apostilles and certifications. That is usually when the flawed notarization is rejected – when it is examined by trained municipal employees. Sometimes the document can be easily redone – other times the holder of the document has a big problem.

How to make your Notary Crazy

There are many ways to make a notary crazy. This post departs from my usual “dry” factual entries, to, with a bit of humor; describe some of the situations that have substantially affected my brown hair to white hair ratio, favoring the latter. Money, time, and information seem central to creating a frustrating situation. “I just have 2 documents to notarize”, states my caller with a very sincere voice. I quote a price and arrive to find that in addition to the 2 documents there is a need to notarize the 57 copies! “But they’re just copies!” – sayeth the client. Now it’s time for a new fee discussion, and “out the window” with my carefully planned route / schedule. I always ask about the client’s ID – is it government issued with a photo? Then I arrive to find they have a Social Security card (no picture), and proudly present to me a photo ID from “Freddie’s Gym”.

As a New York Mobile Notary Public – with emphasis on the “mobile” – I get to go to interesting places. Client apartments can be rife with distractions: squalling kids, barking dogs, flying birds, jumping cats; and let me not forget to mention: nudists. One rugged client; on a cold and windy day, wanted to sign papers (a thick stack of loan documents) on a park bench. There is nothing like hearing the “clang” of the metal door sliding shut when you enter a prison or secured section of a mental hospital facility – they warn you: “Don’t lose your exit pass, without it you become a new resident”. One rush job, considering New York City traffic, required me to use my motorcycle – and notarize the documents using a clipboard on the gas tank of the bike.

Notaries are strongly forbidden, unless they are also attorneys, to “practice law”; which includes the creation of legal documents or giving legal advice. “But you know more about this stuff than I do – tell me how to word the contract”, is an all too common request. I explain my legal limitations and the client simply rewords the same request – several times. I offer services at all days and times. However, being human, I need to sleep sometimes. Receiving a casual question, at 4AM, causes another hair of Kenneth A. Edelstein to turn white. On my site I request “wee hour” calls are limited to genuine emergencies.

Misinformation can be the greatest cause of notary frustration. My client has a serious problem and a tight deadline. However, the meeting address is not accurate, and they are not answering the now presumed to be incorrect cell phone number. I have other work to do. An hour after the scheduled meeting they call – outraged that I did not honor my commitment to meet them. I explain that the carefully logged address does not exist, nor did they answer their cell. “Oh – that address was “where I was”, “not where I want to meet you” – and my cell number changed last week – can you get here in 10 minutes?

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