2017 South Carolina Code of Laws
Title 26 - Notaries Public and Acknowledgements
CHAPTER 1 - NOTARIES PUBLIC
Section 26-1-120. Notarial certificate.

(A) A notary may not make or give a notarial certificate unless the notary has either personal knowledge or satisfactory evidence of the identity of the principal and, if applicable, the subscribing witness.

(B) By making or giving a notarial certificate, regardless of whether it is stated in the certificate, a notary certifies that:

(1) at the time the notarial act was performed and the notarial certificate was signed by the notary, the notary was lawfully commissioned, the notary's commission had neither expired nor been suspended, the notarial act was performed within the geographic limits of the notary's commission, and the notarial act was performed in accordance with the provisions of this chapter;

(2) if the notarial certificate is for an acknowledgment or the administration of an oath or affirmation, the person whose signature was notarized did not appear in the judgment of the notary to be incompetent, lacking in understanding of the nature and consequences of the transaction requiring the notarial act, or to be acting involuntarily, under duress, or undue influence; and

(3) the notary was not prohibited from acting pursuant to this chapter.

(C) The inclusion of additional information in a notarial certificate, including the representative or fiduciary capacity in which a person signed or the means a notary used to identify a principal, does not invalidate an otherwise sufficient notarial certificate.

(D) A notarial certificate for the acknowledgment must comply with Chapter 3, Title 26, the Uniform Recognition of Acknowledgments Act.

(E) A notarial certificate for the verification or proof of the signature of a principal by a subscribing witness taken by a notary is sufficient and must be accepted in this State if it is substantially in a form otherwise prescribed by the laws of this State, or if it:

(1) identifies the state and county in which the verification or proof occurred;

(2) names the subscribing witness who appeared in person before the notary;

(3) names the principal whose signature on the record is to be verified or proven;

(4) indicates that the subscribing witness certified to the notary under oath or by affirmation that the subscribing witness is not a party to or beneficiary of the transaction, signed the record as a subscribing witness, and either (i) witnessed the principal sign the record, or (ii) witnessed the principal acknowledge the principal's signature on the record;

(5) states the date of the verification or proof;

(6) contains the signature of the notary who took the verification or proof; and

(7) states the notary's commission expiration date.

(F) A notarial certificate for an oath or affirmation taken by a notary is sufficient and must be accepted in this State if it is substantially in a form otherwise prescribed by the laws of this State, or if it:

(1) names the principal who appeared in person before the notary unless the name of the principal otherwise is clear from the record itself;

(2) indicates that the principal who appeared in person before the notary signed the record in question and certified to the notary under oath or by affirmation as to the truth of the matters stated in the record;

(3) states the date of the oath or affirmation;

(4) contains the signature of the notary who took the oath or affirmation; and

(5) states the notary's commission expiration date.

(G) A notarial certificate made in another jurisdiction is sufficient in this State if it is made in accordance with federal law or the laws of the jurisdiction where the notarial certificate was made.

(H) On records to be filed, registered, recorded, or delivered in another state or jurisdiction of the United States, a South Carolina notary may complete a notarial certificate that is required in that other state or jurisdiction.

HISTORY: 2014 Act No. 185 (S.356), Section 1, eff June 2, 2014.

Editor's Note

Prior Laws: Former Section 26-1-120 was titled Notary as stockholder, director, officer or employee of corporation; exercise of powers, and had the following history: 1962 Code Section 49-11; 1952 Code Section 49-11; 1942 Code Section 3463; 1932 Code Section 3463; Civ. C. '22 Section 821; Civ. C. '12 Section 736; Civ. C. '02 Section 665; G. S. 523; R. S. 581; 1871 (15) 538; 1911 (27) 139; 1927 (35) 43; 1938 (40) 1559. See now Section 26-1-190.