WHAT IS A NOTARY PUBLIC?

WHO IS A NOTARY?
A Notary is a qualified lawyer - a member of the third and oldest branch of the legal profession in the United Kingdom. He is appointed by the Archbishop of Canterbury and is subject to regulation by the Court of Faculties.

WHAT DOES A NOTARY DO?
A Notary is primarily concerned with the preparation and authentication of documents for use abroad. Notaries are widely recognised internationally although, for historical reasons, they play a lesser role in United Kingdom domestic matters. They have all the powers of a Solicitor other than the conduct of litigation.

WHAT DISTINGUISHES A NOTARY?
A Notary has two significant differences from a Solicitor (although most Notaries are also Solicitors). First his duty is to the transaction as a whole and not just to one of the parties. A Notary may act for both parties to a transaction as long as there is no conflict between them and his duty is to ensure that the transaction they conclude is fair to both sides. Secondly, a Notary identifies himself on documents by the use of his individual seal. Such seals have historical origins and are regarded by most other countries as of great importance for establishing the genuineness of a document. A Notary's seal will be registered with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and with many foreign embassies and consulates. Procedures exist for the seal to be further authenticated - a process called 'legalisation'.

APPOINTMENT
The Master of the Court of Faculties, on the advice of a Qualifications Board, regulates the appointment of Notaries in England and Wales through the Notaries (Qualification) Rules 1998 and the Notaries (Post Admission) Rules 1991. The main requirements for an applicant are:

To be over 21 years.
To take the Oath of Allegiance
To pass the Diploma in Notarial Practice
To provide certificates of fitness to practise and of good character
To obtain a Faculty
To be subject to supervision for the first two years of practice
To be in possession of an annual Practising Certificate subject to
possessing approved insurance cover
On appointment, a Notary will require to be in possession of a seal Special provision is made for lawyers from the EU who wish to practise in England and
Wales.

DIPLOMA IN NOTARIAL PRACTICE
The Qualifications Board recognises the course of study for this Diploma offered by the Cambridge University Board of Continuing Education. For those in possession of a Law Degree or with other legal qualifications, there are a number of exemptions which will result, in many cases, in the work for the Diploma being confined to a year long distance learning course which covers the detailed requirements of notarial practice. Applications for exemptions and to register for the course should be made direct to the Board of Continuing Education.

FACULTY
A Faculty is a warrant issued under the seal of the Archbishop of Canterbury authorising a Notary to practise as such and entitles an applicant to have his name included on the Roll of Notaries. Following the award of a Diploma, and before a Faculty is issued, an applicant must provide the required certificates of fitness to practise and of good character; take the Oath of Allegiance at the Faculty Office and pay the prescribed fee. Before an annual Practising Certificate is issued, the Faculty Office will require to be satisfied that approved insurance cover is in place. For Solicitors, membership of the Solicitors Indemnity Fund is sufficient.

SUPERVISION
For the first two years a Notary must be supervised by an experienced Notary living in his vicinity. The supervisor will visit at least once every four months and will inspect the new Notary’s work, records and accounts to ensure that he is complying with the Practice Rules and the requirements of good notarial practice. There is also a requirement to attend an approved course in each of the two years. The new Notary has to pay fees (which are set by the Faculty Office) to the supervisor while the supervisor is required to submit a report at the conclusion of the period of supervision - which the Master may extend if he feels it is
appropriate.

THE NOTARIES SOCIETY
Membership of The Notaries Society is open to all Notaries in England and Wales. The Society is a membership body for the profession and had no disciplinary powers. It does operate an informal complaints procedure which has been approved by the Master while it is the Court of Faculties which regulates and disciplines the profession. Further information may be obtained from:

The Faculty Office
1 The Sanctuary, Westminster, London SW1 3JT
Web site http://www.facultyoffice.org.uk/

The Notaries Society
23 New Street, Woodbridge IP12 1DN
Web site http://www.thenotariessociety.org.uk