I agree that we are allowed to "certify" and that a notary does not have a duty to conduct an investigation. Bear in mind that if a "certified copy" is used for an evil purpose, that the notary my be involved in the litigation and may be sued individually. We are not "certified" document examiners and should not trust our powers of observation. It is very easy to substitute edited pages of a computer generated document. Could the POA copy have been used to transfer the Santa Barbara ranch? To transfer the brokerage accounts?
My concern is why the request was made & for what purpose the "certified copy" will be used. Is the principal now incapacitated? If not, new POAs can be executed. If the principal is incapacitated, let the Agent record the Original & get as many certified copies as needed from the recorder. |
