NOTARY PUBLIC (Lat. otarins, one who writes, from note, mark). An officer 41111y au thorized to attest or certify legal instruments, and to perform certain other c1Be15I acts, usual ly of a ministerial character. The office is created by statute, and the functions of a notary public vary in different jurisdictions. Notaries were known in England before the Conquest, and in all the countries of Europe at an even earlier time. They were appointed by the popes at Rome, and acted as officials in the ecclesiastical courts, in addition to exercising certain seeular powers. In England the authority to appoint notaries was finally by the Roman See to the Archbishop of Canterbury. and after the Reformation a statute was enaeted (23 Hen.
c. 21, 4)confirming the right in the Arch bishop as a high prelate in the English Church.
With the develm»nent of the commerce of Eng land and the 'law merchant' the office of notary public increased in importanee very rapidly. Notaries were employed to protest commercial paper, to witness certain papers under the mari time law, and were gradually vested with the powers which they exercise generally to-day. In the United States. notaries are appointed by the Governors of the States; and the authority of a notary to act. therefore. does not extend beyond the limits of the particular territory in a State for which he is appointed. This territory is usually a county, and he cannot perform any acts in uuothcr county unless he complies with certain prescribed formalities, such as tiling a certificate and paying an additional fee. itt many States a notary may thus extend his official pow ers to all the counties of his State, but he cannot exercise his powers except for the county in which he is personally present at any given tinie.
In general, any male citizen is eligible to ap pointment as a notary. In most States, in order to qualify, a notary must take an oath of office, and iu some he must give a bond to secure the faithful performance of the duties of his office; and a breach of his official duties is punished criminally. A notary's seal must be affixed to many legal instruments authenticated before him.
The statutes of the different States vary as to the necessity of a notarial seal.
As notaries are State officers, their acts in mat ters in which the Federal Government is in volved are not valid except in eases where their authority is specially recognized by the acts of Congress. These Federal statutes provide that a may administer all oaths and take all acknowledgments whieli a justice of the peace may do, and the authority of notaries to take depositions, titlidavits, etc., for use in the United States courts is also expressly authorized. The notarial seal must be affixed to all documents in tended to be used in the courts or any department of the Federal Government. The United States statutes in this regard are very strictly eonst rued.
The general powers of a notary as a State of ficer are as follows: to take acknowledgment of legal instruments, such as deeds, mortgage:, bills of sale, etc.: to take affidavits; to take depositions (q.v.) : to protest commercial paper: and. in States, to exercise the powers of a justice of the peace.
A notary may be disqualified to act by reason of his financial interest in a matter brought be fore him. Thus where a not:try is a grantee in a deed, he cannot take the acknowledgment of the grantor. or person conveying the property. Belationship to one of the parties to a deed or other legal instrument %NI]] not ordinarily dis qualify a notary from taking the acknowledg ment of that party. as it is a ministerial :let ; but where the notary is emninissioned to take depositions, it is eonsidered more in the nature of a judieial act, and if he is a near relative to one of the parties to the snit, in most jurisdie• Lions he is disqualified for that reason. The fees of notaries are fixed by statute in each State, and generally it is a misdemeanor for It nolary to demand and receive more than the statutory fee for an act. By statute in most jurisdictions cer tain other officials, such as judges, justices of the peace, mayors of cities, ele., are vested with no tarial powers. See EVIDENcE: ACENOWLED(; MU Art