MN Notary Notarial Acts and Procedures 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which of the following is a notarial act authorized under Minnesota law?
- Taking an acknowledgment (Correct answer)
- Issuing a marriage license
- Recording a deed
- Certifying a court judgment
Correct answer: Taking an acknowledgment
Taking an acknowledgment is one of the core notarial acts authorized for Minnesota notaries under Minn. Stat. § 358A.
Question 2: In Minnesota, what must a notary do before completing a jurat?
- Administer an oath or affirmation to the signer (Correct answer)
- Record the act in a notary journal
- Collect the statutory fee
- Verify the document has no blank spaces
Correct answer: Administer an oath or affirmation to the signer
A jurat requires the notary to administer an oath or affirmation, during which the signer swears or affirms the truthfulness of the document's contents.
Question 3: What is the purpose of an affirmation in a notarial act?
- It serves as a non-religious alternative to an oath (Correct answer)
- It certifies the document is an original
- It verifies the signer's identity
- It confirms the document was notarized in Minnesota
Correct answer: It serves as a non-religious alternative to an oath
An affirmation has the same legal effect as an oath but does not invoke a religious reference, accommodating signers with religious objections.
Question 4: Under Minnesota law, a notary may NOT perform which of the following acts?
- Certify a copy of a vital record such as a birth certificate (Correct answer)
- Administer an oath
- Take an acknowledgment
- Perform a copy certification of a non-vital document
Correct answer: Certify a copy of a vital record such as a birth certificate
Minnesota notaries may not certify copies of vital records such as birth or death certificates — those can only be obtained from the state Office of Vital Records.
Question 5: When notarizing a signature by mark in Minnesota, what is typically required?
- Two witnesses must sign near the mark (Correct answer)
- The notary must co-sign the document
- A court order must be obtained first
- The signer must provide a thumbprint
Correct answer: Two witnesses must sign near the mark
When a signer uses a mark instead of a full signature, Minnesota practice generally requires two disinterested witnesses to observe and sign near the mark.
Question 6: Which statement best describes a 'copy certification' notarial act in Minnesota?
- The notary certifies that a photocopy is a true copy of an original non-vital document (Correct answer)
- The notary certifies the original document is authentic
- The notary certifies the signer's identity on a copied document
- The notary certifies the document was filed with a government agency
Correct answer: The notary certifies that a photocopy is a true copy of an original non-vital document
Copy certification allows a Minnesota notary to compare a photocopy with the original and certify they are identical, for non-vital documents.
MN Notary Notarial Acts and Procedures 1
Which of the following is a notarial act authorized under Minnesota law?