FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Fortunately, there are many ways to book appointments with us! You can book appointments online, Call or Text us at 323-646-7721, or you can send an e-mail at Barrett.Notary@yahoo.com.

• Please review all documents for the correct spelling of names and correct dates. • All forms must be completed except where Notarial wording appears and of course signature lines. • A Valid form of ID must be present at the time of signing.

Every signer must be identified through one of the identification documents or other methods listed in California Code 1185[b]: • A California Driver’s License or nondriver’s ID • A U.S. passport (or passport card) • A valid foreign passport from the applicant’s country of citizenship • A driver’s license or official nondriver’s ID issued by a U.S. state • A Canadian or Mexican driver’s license issued by an appropriate public agency • A U.S. military ID • An inmate identification card issued by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation if the inmate is in prison or any form of inmate identification issued by a sheriff’s department if the inmate is in custody in a local detention facility • An employee ID issued by an agency or office of a California city, county, or city and county • An identification card issued by a federally-recognized tribal government • A valid consular identification document issued by a consulate from the applicant’s country of citizenship that meets specific requirements • The oath or affirmation of one or two credible witnesses (an individual who personally knows the signer and can vouch for the signer's identity to the Notary).

• Powers of Attorney • DMV Documents • Personal Legal documents • Parental Consent Letters for Travel • Financial Documents • Acknowledgements / Affirmations • Wills & Trusts • Guardianships • Domestic Partnerships • Health Care Directives • Passport & Visa Applications • Adoption Documents • Contracts • Corporate Documents • Vehicle Title Transfers • Mylar Maps • Condo Conversion • Health Care Directives • Estate Planning Documents ​• Wealth Management documents • Real Estate Documents • Proof of Residency • Advance Health Care Directives • Agreements • Affidavits • Copy Certifications • Deeds • Divorce Settlements • Investment Paperwork • Prenuptial Agreements • Settlements • SNDA and Estoppels • Stipulations • VitalChek Applications • Banking Documents

A Notary Public is an official of integrity appointed by state government —typically by the secretary of state — to serve the public as an impartial witness in performing a variety of official fraud-deterrent acts related to the signing of important documents. These official acts are called notarizations, or notarial acts. Notaries are publicly commissioned as “ministerial” officials, meaning that they are expected to follow written rules without the exercise of significant personal discretion, as would otherwise be the case with a “judicial” official. A Notary's duty is to screen the signers of important documents — such as property deeds, wills and powers of attorney — for their true identity, their willingness to sign without duress or intimidation, and their awareness of the contents of the document or transaction. Some notarizations also require the Notary to put the signer under an oath, declaring under penalty of perjury that the information contained in a document is true and correct. Impartiality is the foundation of the Notary's public trust. They are duty-bound not to act in situations where they have a personal interest. The public trusts that the Notary’s screening tasks have not been corrupted by self-interest. And impartiality dictates that a Notary never refuse to serve a person due to race, nationality, religion, politics, sexual orientation or status as a non-customer. ​As official representatives of the state, Notaries Public certify the proper execution of many of the life-changing documents of private citizens — whether those diverse transactions convey real estate, grant powers of attorney, establish a prenuptial agreement, or perform the multitude of other activities that enable our civil society to function.

Yes! All before a Notary Public can be commissioned by the Secretary of State, all Notaries must go through yearly background tests, pass the California mandated Notary exam and have current bonds and E&O insurance through the State of California.

As a Mobile Notary service, we specialize in bringing our services to you. This might be your home or office, a restaurant, nursing facility, hospital, airport, federal, state or county correctional building -- you name it and we can be there. We primarily offer this extensive coverage in and around the Eastside of Los Angeles. We typically service the areas of Downtown Los Angeles, Silverlake, Echo Park, Los Feliz, Atwater Village, Frogtown, Koreatown, Hollywood, Highland Park, Chinatown, Eagle Rock and all points in between. Please feel free to contact us if you have any further questions.

We accept all major Credit/Debit Cards, Checks, Paypal, Venmo, the Cash App, ApplePay, Squar​eCash and of course Cash. We can also provide invoicing upon request.

Our normal business hours are as follows: Monday: 8AM-9PM Tuesday: 8AM-9PM Wednesday: 8AM-9PM Thursday: 8AM-9PM Friday: 8AM-9PM Saturday: 10AM-6PM (weekend/holiday rates are subject to additional mobile fees)

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The purpose of an acknowledgment is to ensure that the signer of a document is who they claim to be and has voluntarily signed the document. Acknowledgments often are needed for documents concerning valuable assets, such as deeds, mortgages and deeds of trust. To perform an acknowledgment, the signer must personally appear before you at the time of notarization to be positively identified and to declare — or “acknowledge” — that the signature on the document is their own and that they signed willingly. While it is common practice for your client to sign the document in front of you at the time of the notarization, it is not necessary. Your client may sign the document before bringing it to you and declare — or acknowledge — to you that the signature on the document is theirs. ​ JURATS ​ The purpose of a jurat is for a signer to swear or affirm that the contents of a document are true. Depending on the jurisdiction, it also can be known as an affidavit or a verification on oath or affirmation. For a jurat, the signer must personally appear before you and sign the document in your presence. You must then administer an oath or affirmation and have the signer speak aloud his or her promise that the statements in the document are true. The choice between an oath or affirmation should be made by the signer. Administering the oath or affirmation is a vital part of performing a jurat or verification because the signer is affirming that the contents of the document are true, and he or she may be prosecuted for perjury if the contents are not true. In some cases, a client may simply need you to administer an oath or affirmation orally, rather than as part of a jurat, affidavit or other written document. The purpose of administering a verbal oath or affirmation is, again, to compel a client to truthfulness. An oath is a solemn pledge to a supreme being. An affirmation is a solemn pledge on the individual’s personal honor. Again, the choice should be made by the signer. A copy certification confirms that a reproduction of an original document is a “full, true, and accurate transcription or reproduction” of the original. Documents requiring copy certification may include: diplomas, driver’s licenses, leases, contracts, vehicle titles, Social Security cards, medical records and bills of sale. To perform a copy certification, the person in possession of an original document (known also as the “document custodian”) takes the original document to a Notary. The Notary typically will make a photocopy of the document and complete a certificate for the copy certification to confirm that the photocopy is a true, accurate and complete copy of the original. While copy certifications are considered a common notarial act, nearly half of the U.S. states bar Notaries from performing this type of notarization. Make sure to check your state’s guidelines to see if you may certify copies. Of the states that do authorize this act, some stipulate that you may only certify copies of documents, not images, or other items. Other states allow Notaries to certify copies of both “records” and “items,” such as graphs, maps or images. Many states also forbid the copy certification of vital, public documents, such as birth and death certificates, marriage licenses and deeds. And as a general practice, the Model Notary Act (section 2-4) recommends against certifying copies of these types of documents. Certified copies of these documents may be obtained from the agency that holds the originals.

Each Notarized signature usually take about 5 minutes.

APOSTILLE An Apostille (pronounced “ah-po-steel”) is a French word meaning certification. An Apostille is simply the name for a specialized certificate, issued by the California Secretary of State. The Apostille, which contains a stamped red seal, is attached to your original document to verify it is legitimate and authentic so it will accepted in one of the other countries who are members of the Hague Apostille Convention. In 1961, many countries joined together to create a simplified method of “legalizing” documents for universal recognition. Members of the conference, referred to as the Hague Convention, adopted a document referred to as an Apostille that would be recognized by all member countries. Since October 15, 1981, the United States has been part of the 1961 Hague Convention abolishing the Requirement of Legalization for Foreign Public Documents. The Apostille Convention provides for the simplified certification of public (including notarized) documents to be used in countries that have joined the convention. Documents destined for use in participating countries and their territories should be certified by one of the officials in the jurisdiction in which the document has been executed. The Apostille Convention requires that all Apostille’s be numbered consecutively, with individual numbers applied to each Apostille issued. The recognized standard Apostille contains a seal and 10 mandatory references: name of country from which the document emanates, name of person signing the document, the capacity in which the person signing the document has acted, in the case of unsigned documents, the name of the authority that has affixed the seal or stamp, place of certification date of certification, the authority issuing the certificate, number of certificate, seal or stamp of authority issuing certificate and signature of authority issuing certificate. EXAMPLE OF A CALIFORNIA APOSTILLE ​ Prior to the introduction of Apostille certificates the burden on international courts and authorities to judge foreign documents as authentic was quite considerable. On the 5 October 1961 the Hague Convention abolished the requirement of legalisation for foreign public documents. The Convention reduces all of the formalities of legalisation to the simple delivery of a certificate in a prescribed form, entitled “Apostille”, by the authorities of the State where the document originates. This certificate, placed on the document, is dated, numbered and registered. The verification of its registration can be carried out without difficulty by means of a simple request for information addressed to the authority which delivered the certificate.

Yes! We regularly get these requests and accept documents from customers all around the world. If you are not in the area and would like us to take care of the Apostille processing for you, we would be more then happy to help. We will take care of things like getting your documents Authenticated, Apostilled, obtaining Signature Certifications, Verifications and/or Legalizing your documents at the Consulate if needed. If you choose to mail your documents to us, please fill out this order form and mail your document into us for processing. If you are opting to use any of our expedited options, feel free to call us at 323-646-7721or e-mail us at Barrett.Notary@Yahoo.com and request that we send you a pre-paid shipping label free of charge. ​Should you have any questions or concerns at all, please don't hesitate to reach out to us at any time!