To have something notarized means that a trusted public official known as a notary public agrees to attest to the authenticity of a document, agreement, or object at a given point in time. Without notarization, contracts couldn’t reliably be enforced. Many more fraudsters would succeed in committing their acts of financial crime if it weren’t for the public service of notaries. Let’s take a look at the basics of notarizing documents to better understand its purpose and function.
Notarization Is A Primary Defense Against Breach Of Contract And Fraud
If two people signed a contract a year ago and one of them hasn’t honored the contract’s instructions, the non-compliant party can be sued. However, without having an independent, third-party agency to attest to the legitimacy of documents, breach of contract cases are typically one side’s word versus the other’s. Getting such documents notarized can prevent the he-said-she-said hullaballoo before it starts.
All Sworn Statements Must Be Notarized To Be Valid
Affidavits, a legal term used to describe statements and documents that are known to be true, must be notarized to be valid. Notaries public play a big role inside and outside of any court of law.
Without notaries public, no court of law in the United States could utilize affidavits, effectively rendering them as parts of what they once were. Only when one party in a dispute admits to wrongdoing is a notary’s help not needed.
Notaries Verify Involved Parties’ Identities
Notaries must be able to certify the contents of documents at specific points in time. Another important function of notaries is verifying the identities of involved parties. After all, since notaries public see so many different clients, they can’t effectively determine any of their identities from the heart.
Notaries public usually get this responsibility taken care of through validating clienas’ government-issued identifications.
Knowing where to get a notary stamp is something that’s very important for people who are involved in court proceedings and legal transactions. Notarizing documents doesn’t take up much time or money for being required to be considered valid in so many different applications.
