A notary is a person related to the profession of law who is responsible for actions in various legal affairs. It is also termed a notary public or public notary. A notary is rather an officer of the law. The work of a notary involves certifying signatures and documents, and he or she can act as a witness in the processing of legal work.
It is actually the work of attesting the documents to make sure that they are following legal guidelines. The attestation is done with a stamp or official seal along with signing the document as well and a fee is paid to the notary according to the notaries act. Apart from this, a notary is also responsible for administering the oaths.
Ways To Become A Notary
Educational Requirements
To become a notary, you first need to be a qualified lawyer. So, you should take admitted to a law school or institute in an undergraduate course like an LL.B degree.
To enroll in a good institute you need to clear CLAT (Common Law Admission Test) exam. After becoming a lawyer, you need to practice law for 10 years to become a notary.
Develop Professional Skills
The work of a notary is surrounded by paperwork and so, he or she needs to be responsible for handling the work-related documents. Since this is a profession related to law, a notary must be honest at his or her work and should not be partial to someone.
You need to take care while signing the documents and should verify them well before attestation, as your mistakes in verification can cause trouble for you and your career. Also, make sure the stamp is used properly with no invisible signs or incomplete impressions. The official seal and your signature will prove to be an official authentication of all the documents, so you need to be careful at work. Moreover, you need to be good at managing office-related documents also.
Get Requisite Training
Notaries are required to undergo special training in their profession. The time period of that training varies from country to country. While in the United States, it is for a short time like participating in the webinar, in other countries it may lead to a few years of service in law.
Notaries may require to work as an apprentice before practicing or even the licensed professionals may require working for a period of two years under their mentors. The training program includes studying courses related to performance at work and duties related to the profession. He or she is also trained in certification and drafting of official documents.
Apply for the Position of Notary
To be eligible for the post of notary, the requirements differ from country to country. In India, a person practicing law for at least 10 years is eligible for becoming a notary. If he is not a practitioner, he should have good knowledge of law or be a member of the Indian Legal Service. A person who has held an office under the State or Central Government can also be a notary.
Thus after meeting the eligibility requirement, you need to apply for the position of a notary and under this application process your profile is checked whether you have a past criminal record or not. After the preliminary action, you are recommended by the competent authority and then finally the appointment is done. A Government authority has the right to appoint notaries. A notary takes an oath in the presence of another professional notary.
He or she can be a part of the legal department at the State level or may be working in any part of the country. A notary can work in a bank, account-related firms, or law offices. The demand of notaries has increased a lot with the requirement of legal documents at almost every place like schools, colleges, immigration services, and many others