Can a Florida Notary Notarize for Family Members?

The primary role of a Florida notary is to act as an unbiased and disinterested witness to the signing of important legal documents and to ensure that the signer’s identity has been verified and that the signer signed willingly and without any coercion.

Florida Notary as an Impartial Witness

Florida notaries are expected to act as impartial witnesses. They may not gain in any way when performing a notarial act, other than through the notarial fees allowed by Florida statute. Being an impartial witness means a Florida notary must be unbiased and unrelated to the document signer whose signature he or she is witnessing. 

Impartiality ensures the integrity of the notarized document and deters fraudulent transactions. A notary’s impartiality inspires trust in the public, and trust is the foundation of the notarial process. The notary must avoid even the slightest bias in order to protect the transaction.

As a trusted public official, a Florida notary public needs to be completely honest in his or her dealings at all times. There are no exceptions and no gray areas.

A Florida Notary Must Avoid Conflicts of Interest

There are certain circumstances and conditions when a Florida notary is bound by law to refuse notary services. The notary laws explicitly provide prohibitions if notarization presents a conflict of interest for the notary. Section 117.107(12) of the Florida Statutes provides that a Florida notary cannot perform a notarization when he or she has a financial interest in or is a party to the underlying transaction. Thus, if the notary is a party to or has a beneficial interest in the transaction, the notary is prohibited from performing the notarial act. In such a case, the notary would obviously not be impartial, and that would make the transaction unlawful or unenforceable.

What constitutes a financial interest? The notary statutes are silent in this regard. However, even though the statutes do not define “financial interest,” it is relatively easy to determine if the notary public is a party to or has a financial interest in the transaction. For instance, if a notary buys a home, the notary cannot notarize the deed of sale or related documents. Likewise, if a notary will receive a sales commission on a certain transaction, then the notary is prohibited from notarizing the signatures of those involved.

The law, however, does allow a Florida notary who is an employee to notarize the signature for his or her employer. Furthermore, an attorney is permitted to notarize his client's signature on a document that he has prepared as the attorney-of-record. These stated exemptions are allowed if the notary does not receive a benefit other than his or her salary and notarial fees. The notary should not be a party to or have an interest in the transaction, as that would violate the conflict-of-interest rule.

Avoid Notarizing for Family Members

Aside from the financial interest issue, a Florida notary is prohibited from notarizing the signature of a close family member. This is explicitly stated under Section 117.107(11) of the Florida statutes, which stipulates that a Florida notary public may not notarize a document if the person whose signature is to be notarized is the spouse, son, daughter, mother, or father of the notary public. Although the law explicitly excludes only those five family members, the American Association of Notaries (AAN) recommends that a notary refrain from performing notarial acts for any family member, including in-laws and other relatives.

It is often unclear to notaries public when they cannot notarize a document for a family member. However, it is advisable to refrain from performing notarial acts for family members even if the notary has no interest in the document being notarized, because a notary cannot act impartially toward a family member. It is difficult to serve as an impartial witness for a family member, and the notary, in some cases, might be acting under duress or in a manner that benefits his or her relative.

If a family member asks you to notarize a document, you should refuse and provide him or her with a list of reliable notaries who can render their services. It is best to distance yourself from any possibility of irregularity or conflict of interest, because a Florida notary public is expected to be impartial and trustworthy in his or her line of work at all times. Being an impartial and disinterested party should always be the main priority for a Florida notary so that the integrity of the notarized documents may be maintained.

Should you have any questions or require clarification, do not hesitate to contact AAN by calling (713)-644-2299 or visiting our website at www.floridanotaries.com.

The American Association of Notaries is approved by the Florida Department of State to process Florida notary applications and is a leading provider of Florida notary bonds, Florida notary E&O insurance policies, and Florida notary supplies.

Click here to learn how to become a notary in Florida.