Acknowledgments, jurats and oaths, explained for New York notaries

Two acts that look alike on paper

Most of what a New York notary does falls into two acts. Both end with the notary's signature at the bottom of a page, which is why candidates mix them up. They certify different things.

The acknowledgment

An acknowledgment is a person's formal declaration, before an authorized officer, that signing a document was their own act. The booklet's sample wording is the notary certifying that someone came before them, was known to them as the person described in the document, and acknowledged signing it.

What matters here is identity. The notary must know the signer or have satisfactory proof of who they are. The booklet quotes a court saying that the title to real property rests on notaries refusing to sign unless the person is actually known or proved. An acknowledgment is what lets a deed or mortgage be recorded and used as evidence without further proof that it was signed.

The jurat

A jurat is the part of an affidavit where the notary certifies that the statement was sworn to before them. The booklet is blunt that the jurat is not the affidavit. Its usual form is "Sworn to before me this ___ day of ___, 20__," placed right after the signer's signature.

Here the point is the oath. The signer is swearing the contents are true, and the jurat records that it happened in front of you.

Giving the oath properly

An oath must be given in a form meant to "awaken the conscience" of the person, in line with their religious or ethical beliefs. The simplest lawful form the booklet gives is to ask whether they solemnly swear that the contents of the affidavit they signed are correct and true. The person must answer "I do" or words like it.

Someone who will not swear can affirm instead, declaring solemnly, sincerely and truly that the statements are true. An affirmation is just as binding as an oath.

Rules that apply to both

• The person must be in front of you. Taking an acknowledgment or an oath over the telephone is illegal, and the courts have called it serious misconduct. Remote notarization exists only under the separate electronic rules of Executive Law 135-c.
• Show the venue. Every certificate of acknowledgment and every jurat should state where the act happened, usually "State of New York, County of ___ ss.:".
• Do not act where you have an interest. A notary who is a party to the deal, or stands to gain from it, cannot take the acknowledgment. New York courts have treated such an acknowledgment as a nullity.

Two traps the booklet sets

First, do not acknowledge the signing of a will. The booklet warns that an acknowledgment cannot stand in for a will's attestation clause. Second, Sunday is not a day off: a notary may take an acknowledgment or an affidavit on a Sunday, though a deposition in a civil case cannot be taken then.

What it pays

The statutory fee is $2 for an oath or affirmation, $2 for each person whose acknowledgment you take, and $2 for swearing a witness. An electronic notarial act is $25.