Fiduciary Responsibilities for Employers of Notaries
By Employing Notaries Public, Your Organization Has Taken On Certain Responsibilities to Protect the Public from Harm.
The National Notary Association wants to help you understand your role as an employer of Notaries. You should be aware that, when providing Notary services, your organization assumes a fiduciary duty for the specialized work these employees perform.
Recently, courts have weighed in and held employers liable for failing to take steps to prevent Notary-employees' mistakes and misconduct. Essentially, employers bear responsibility to train and supervise their Notaries in order to prevent foreseeable harm to third-parties.
And contrary to widespread perception, the standard of conduct required of your Notaries is not defined solely by statutes and regulations. Rather, reasonable conduct for Notaries includes industry and professional standards of practice as defined by common law sources — and it's these very requirements that prove most difficult to research, compile and put into practice.
We believe it is vital for employers to have in place well-considered plans to address the fiduciary risk presented by their Notary-employees.
This Web site will introduce you to the responsibilities you take on as an employer of Notaries. Through the NNA Employer Risk Management Program, we can provide the means and information you need to address your organization's exposure.