Recording details of what I have done for you
(Why do I have do this and what it involves)
Why making a record is required
As part of carrying out notary work for you I have to make a record of what I do. This is not an optional extra but a basic part of carrying out notary work. A failure to do so is a breach of the rules that govern my work and my general duty as a notary.
What does the record consist of?
The rules that I work under specify the basic information I must keep for each piece of notary work that I do, which is as follows:
- The date of the act
- The person at whose request the act was performed;
- The person or persons, if any, intervening in the act and, in the case of a person who intervened in a representative capacity, the name of his principal;
- The method of identification of the party or parties intervening in the act, and in the case of a party intervening in a representative capacity, any evidence produced to the notary of that party’s entitlement so to intervene;
- The nature of the act;
- The fee charged.
In addition to the above I also record further details about an individual (provided through a form and sight of identification documents, such as a passport etc). I also, normally, keep a complete electronic copy of the documents I notarise. I am not required to do so for all notarised documents but only some of them, but it is considered good notarial practice to do so. There are a category of documents that I must keep a copy (or duplicate original). These are what are called ‘public form’ documents. These are a category of document unknown under UK law, but common in many countries based on civil law (such as many European countries, such as Spain). A very common example is a power of attorney for use in Spain.
Last updated: 7 February 2021.