I know I'm beating a dead horse on this issue, but this thread once again illustrates how much state law can vary from one place to another and how critical it is for us to have a clear understanding of our responsibilities AND of the limits of what we can and can't (and should and shouldn't) do. [And how we need to be careful about what advice we listen to here.]
When facing a situation involving a POA, we need to distinguish between wearing our notary hat vs. wearing our NSA hat. As an NSA, we know that executing loan docs by an AIF needs to be approved in advance - and there may be further guidelines and/or restrictions under various state laws.
In a GNW situation, there's a big difference between what we need to focus on when we're notarizing the execution of a POA by a Principle vs. notarizing someone who is signing as the Agent or 'Attorney In Fact', (AIF) for someone else (the Principle). It's the former situation where we need to be most cautious in determining awareness, willingness, etc. But when it comes to the latter, I don't believe we should assume something inappropriate is going on just because someone has POA authority for someone else.
The vast majority of the time, it's a son or daughter signing for a parent. If it's been prepared by an attorney, there's even less likelihood of a problem. However, that doesn't mean we can't ask questions, like whether or not an attorney was involved; how long ago was the POA executed; are there other siblings; has the POA been recorded, etc. And if the AIF isn't a family member, that might be reason to ask a few more questions. While I believe we should always be careful and look for any signs of that something is 'off', I don't believe we should assume something nefarious is going on just because someone is using their POA authority to sign on someone else's behalf.
In some states, the notary may be required to see proof of that authority, but in others, we should consider it a valid notarial request (as long as it's clear that they're signing "...as AIF" vs. forging someone else's name. Ultimately, if a notary is not comfortable making these judgments, they should always feel free to decline.
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Messages in this Thread |
| accepting POA on a QCD - Blueink_TN on 11/24/19 2:44pm |
| Re: accepting POA on a QCD - Lee/AR on 11/24/19 2:49pm |
| I agree with Lee/AR. - JanetK_CA on 11/24/19 3:13pm |
| By your post I assume title did not mention this in - Linda_H/FL on 11/24/19 2:49pm |
| I agree Linda. We can't assume the POA wasn't - MW/VA on 11/25/19 8:25am |
| No I Definitely Would Not Have Accepted The POA - PegiT_MN on 11/24/19 2:52pm |
| A durable general POA most certainly would be acceptable - Linda_H/FL on 11/24/19 2:54pm |
| Not to mention it's not our role to accept or decline - Linda_H/FL on 11/24/19 2:55pm |
| You Are Right. I Worded My Post Wrong. - PegiT_MN on 11/24/19 2:57pm |
| Re: A durable general POA most certainly would be acceptable - Cheryl Elliott on 11/24/19 2:57pm |
| Good comments~ - Blueink_TN on 11/24/19 3:01pm |
| So You Would Have Accepted The POA? Not Me. - PegiT_MN on 11/24/19 3:02pm |
| I already said what I would have done - especially on a - Linda_H/FL on 11/24/19 3:13pm |
| I Was Asking Cheryl. n/m - PegiT_MN on 11/24/19 8:58pm |
| Re: A durable general POA most certainly would be acceptable - LJCA on 11/24/19 4:08pm |
| Re: A durable general POA most certainly would be acceptable - ikando on 11/26/19 6:35pm |
| Re: No I Would Not Have Accepted The POA - Signerbill on 11/26/19 5:35pm |
| Signerbill~ this makes sense - Blueink_TN on 11/27/19 8:36am |
| Re: accepting POA on a QCD - Luckydog on 11/24/19 5:53pm |
| let us know how this turns out tomorrow n/m - shooterclay on 11/24/19 6:19pm |
| Re: let us know how this turns out tomorrow - BearPaw/CO on 11/24/19 7:13pm |
| Re: hmmm — POA and QCD could spell license to steal n/m - Carolyn Bodley on 11/24/19 9:52pm |
| I agree Carolyn..which is why my post ended with - Linda_H/FL on 11/25/19 6:46am |
| Re: no need to hush Linda - Carolyn Bodley on 11/25/19 8:53am |
| Re: accepting POA on a QCD - Cheryl Elliott on 11/25/19 7:55am |
| Re: POA, in and of itself, is a legal document - Carolyn Bodley on 11/25/19 8:45am |
| Re: POA, in and of itself, is a legal document - Carolyn Bodley on 11/25/19 8:50am |
| Just so everyone is clear, the property held in a trust - Cheryl Elliott on 11/25/19 11:41am |
| So, Blueink_TN...how does this end? n/m - Lee/AR on 11/25/19 1:25pm |
| Re: So, Blueink_TN...how does this end? - Blueink_TN on 11/25/19 1:54pm |
| Re: So, Blueink_TN...how does this end? - Carolyn Bodley on 11/25/19 2:49pm |
| I would definitely pass on this one, Blueink. - Cheryl Elliott on 11/25/19 4:00pm |
| If, and this is a big IF, they can find another lender - Linda_H/FL on 11/25/19 4:12pm |
| Re: If, and this is a big IF, they can find another lender - Blueink_TN on 11/25/19 4:55pm |
| Re: If, and this is a big IF, they can find another lender - Carolyn Bodley on 11/25/19 5:25pm |
| Re: DPOA not DOIA — big fingers n/m - Carolyn Bodley on 11/25/19 5:28pm |
| Re: If, and this is a big IF, they can find another lender - Linda_H/FL on 11/25/19 5:26pm |
| Re: Linda: n/m - Carolyn Bodley on 11/25/19 5:29pm |
| Re: Linda: ....Yes Ma'am? :) n/m - Linda_H/FL on 11/25/19 5:32pm |
| Re: Linda: - Carolyn Bodley on 11/25/19 5:34pm |
| Possibly...all I know is you're right..it's a horrid disease n/m - Linda_H/FL on 11/25/19 5:40pm |
| Just got a call from Title - Blueink_TN on 11/25/19 7:53pm |
| Interesting. It's their call to make. n/m - MW/VA on 11/25/19 8:01pm |
| never accept? doubt that. sure must be pre-approved by TC - sigtogo/OR on 11/26/19 10:27am |
| wait! no Alzheimer, dementia according to Blueink signer - sigtogo/OR on 11/26/19 10:44am |
| Re: wait! no Alzheimer, dementia according to Blueink signer - Yoli/CA on 11/26/19 2:07pm |
| yes dementia, no alzheimer was my point. Also seems - sigtogo/OR on 11/26/19 3:31pm |
| Re: If, and this is a big IF, they can find another lender - JanetK_CA on 11/25/19 9:27pm |
| Re: If, and this is a big IF, they can find another lender - Blueink_TN on 11/27/19 8:54am |
| Re: If, and this is a big IF, they can find another lender - Carolyn Bodley on 11/27/19 9:16am |
| Re: If, and this is a big IF, they can find another lender - Blue/CA on 11/27/19 10:31am |
| Always call your hiring entity - Blueink_TN on 11/27/19 10:42am |
| Re: If, and this is a big IF, they can find another lender - Carolyn Bodley on 11/27/19 12:58pm |
| Blueink-why do you think this? - sigtogo/OR on 11/27/19 12:29pm |
| Once again, know your state law on this issue! - JanetK_CA on 11/27/19 3:22pm |
| Re: why I said not every case is financial elder abuse or - Carolyn Bodley on 11/27/19 7:36pm |