Bankruptcy

The Notary Fraud Condonation Act of 2010

By Adam Levitin

It looks as if the President will veto the Notary Fraud Condonation Act of 2010, formally known as Interstate Recognition of Notarizations Act of 2010.  

Notary fraud is nothing new, and it's hardly foreclosure-specific.  Requiring state courts to recognize out-of-state notarizations would be a significant invasion of the federal government into states' own rules of evidence.  It's not equivalen to requiring recognition of other states' judgments.  Some jurisdictions, like DC, recognize out-of-state notarizations, but one can easily understand why a state might not:  how does a state court in Florida know what a proper Alaska or Hawaii or Vermont notarization looks like or what rules govern notaries in those jurisdictions?  Is there supposed to be a seal?  What does it look like?  Does the signature need to be performed in the notary's presence or merely affirmed?  If the notarization is fraudulent, is the out-of-state notary likely to be disciplined?   

Full post as published by Credit Slips on October 07, 2010 (boomark / email).