As a business owner, would I have a financial interest in the transactions being notarized for my company's business?

Section 117.107(12), Florida Statutes, provides that you may not be the notary for a transaction in which you have a financial interest or to which you are a party. Although this provision was added to the notary law in 1992, it is not a new prohibition. This provision was merely a codification of the same prohibition established by case law dating as far back as the 1800s and as recently as the 1990s.

Generally, it is fairly easy to determine if you are a party to the transaction. For example, if you were buying a home, you could not be the notary for the mortgage documents or the deed. Additionally, if you were being named as the attorney-in-fact on a power of attorney document, you would be prohibited from notarizing the signature of the person executing the document.

What constitutes financial interest? There is no exact answer to this question. Although the term is not defined in the notary laws, there are some clear examples of financial interest. For instance, when a notary receives a sales commission on the transaction at hand (the sale of an automobile, an insurance policy, real estate, etc.), he or she would be prohibited from notarizing the signatures those persons involved. Additionally, the owner of a business should not notarize signatures on documents pertaining to his business transactions.

The law exempts a salaried employee (if not related to the document signer) from this prohibitive provision of the law. However, what about a notary whose spouse owns the business and he or she receives no salary? Aside from the financial interest issue, the notary is prohibited from notarizing his or her spouse's signature. Experts on notary issues agree that the spouse of the business owner would probably have a financial interest in the transactions of that business, and therefore, should not notarize in these instances.

An attorney is exempt from this provision of the law and is permitted to notarize his client's signature on a document that he has prepared, if he is serving as the attorney-of-record and is only receiving a fee for his legal services or his notary services. However, if the attorney were also a party to the transaction, or had an interest, such as being named the executor or administrator of an estate, he should not notarize his client's signature on such documents.

When you are unsure whether you are a party to or have a financial interest in a particular transaction, it is always safer to err on the side of caution and decline to notarize the signature. Keep in mind that, as a notary, you should be a disinterested third party who, if called upon to testify about the transaction, would be completely detached from all parties and appear unbiased in your testimony.