When examining a certificate, I think it's important to look at it from the point of the recipient. So lets say it's 2022 and for some reason I'm receiving a digital document that was notarized; it says it was notarized on January 22, 2020. So I google the Florida laws and find out that on that date, the signer could have been physically present with the notary, or could have appeared via an audio-video link.
For whatever reason, I'm not willing to accept the document if it was notarized by audio-video link. So I call the notary. The person who answers the phone says the notary is dead, and has no idea what became of the notary's journal and electronic data. The certificate says "The forgoing instrument was acknowledged before me on this____ day __________, _______ by Sam Signer and etc." Since the certificate doesn't say the signer was physically present, I reject the document. |
