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Posted by BearPaw/CO on 2/2/19 4:04pm
This is a classic case of he said, she said, Unless that UPS store has a video of the notary instructing her to sign as a witness, well..... too bad, IMO. And even if he did, it's her fault for signing there because it's not the notary's responsibility to know how wills should be filled out and signed. At least I have never read that in any handbook of the two states where I've been a notary. SignerBill is right; just refuse to notarize. The couple should have known what's required to compete a will. If they were seeking guidance on what to do (which they obviously were), and the notary told them wrong stuff, then the notary is guilty of UPL. Fact is, if the notary told them right stuff, still likely UPL. How many times do we know the answer to these type of questions but are not allowed to answer. And now it's 100% the notary's fault? Not based on the info in the story.
Then again, the notary may not have known she was the wife and assumed she was a witness. This is unlikely (ya never know), but certainly is something the notary could offer as a defense. Are SC notaries responsible for knowing how many witnesses need to sign a will? And on and on it goes.
That said, most if not all UPS notaries (not to mention corner store notaries) are complete idiots. At least that's been my experience. And only a bigger idiot would take a will into a UPS store. |
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