Can a notary public notarize a family member's document in North Carolina?

Answer 1

According to the National Notary Association:

Most state laws do not expressly prohibit notarizing for a relative. However, Notaries who do so in many instances will violate statutes prohibiting a direct beneficial interest. For instance, if a Notary is asked to witness her husband's signature on a loan document for the purchase of a home they will share, she will directly benefit from the transaction and should disqualify herself.

The likelihood of a direct beneficial interest is usually greater with immediate family members -- spouse, mother, father, son, daughter, sister or brother -- than with non-immediate, such as in-laws, cousins, nieces, nephews, aunts and uncles. The matter of interest in an inheritance is more often a consideration with lineal descendants (children, grandchildren, etc.) and ascendants (parents, grandparents, etc.) than with nonlinear relatives.

In many instances, a Notary will have no beneficial interest in notarizing for a relative and will not be prevented by law from doing so. However, to avoid later questioning of the Notary's impartiality, as well as accusations of undue influence, it is always safest for a signer to find a Notary who is not related.

Answer 2

No. Notary Publics can only be a witness to things, such as signatures, and then by affixing their signatures and seal to the document, they attest to the fact that the person who signed the document identified themselves as actually being that person. They have no legal power to sign another person's name, for that they would need the other person's 'Power Of Attorney.'

Answer 3

Yes. A notary can notarize the signature of a family member as long as the instrument does not benefit the notary such as notarizing a will that they will inherit under, or a deed that is granting them land. A third party notary is always the better choice if the document ever becomes vulnerable to challenges.

Answer 4

Legally SIGN a document for a family member . . ., NO, they may not sign a family member's signature FOR the family member. That is forgery!

Although the Notary laws of some states differ, to eliminate any possible taint of conflict-of-interest, it is NOT a good idea for a Notary to WITNESS a family member's signature either.

Answer 5

Most jurisdictions do not explicitly forbid notaries from notarizing signatures for family members, as long as the notary does not benefit thereby (in some states, notaries' fees are set by statute; this is not what is meant by "benefit"). Notarizing a will in which the notary is named as a beneficiary is at the very least suspect, though.

Depending on what the document is, it may not really matter whether the notary is related to the signer or not. If you're just having a signature on some routine paperwork notarized, it doesn't make much difference whether it's done by your third cousin or by a complete stranger.

Any notary should be familiar with the restrictions on what he or she is or is not allowed to notarize, so if there's any question in your mind, just ask. If there's even the slightest irregularity about it, most notaries will err on the side of caution and suggest you have it done by someone else.