Business signings usually go wrong for scheduling reasons rather than notarial ones. Almost always it is a signer who could not be in the room, or a title that does not match the paperwork.
What usually needs notarizing
Corporate resolutions, certificates of authority, commercial leases and guaranties, deeds of assignment, affidavits, vendor and lender forms, and occasionally employment paperwork. Each notarized signature is its own notarial act at $15, so the cost of a signing follows the number of signatures rather than the thickness of the file.
Signers are the constraint
Every signer appears before the notary. An assistant cannot sign for a director, and a co-signer cannot cover for the one who is travelling, unless they hold a power of attorney and sign in that capacity.
For a board that is spread across three time zones, the practical answers are a single scheduled window everyone commits to, separate appointments in each location, or remote online notarization for the signers who cannot attend. All three need arranging in advance, and the last one needs the receiving party to accept electronic notarization.
Book the window first: The commonest reason a corporate signing slips is a signer who was never actually free. Confirm availability before the documents are finalised, not after.
Titles and names have to match
Where someone signs in a representative capacity, as managing member, as treasurer, as attorney-in-fact, the capacity stated in the document should match the authority they actually hold, and the name should match their identification.
We verify the identity of the person in front of us. We do not verify that the company authorized them, and we cannot advise on whether the stated capacity is correct. That is for your counsel and for whoever receives the document.
On-site is usually faster
Bringing the notary to the office means signers stay in the building, questions are answered by the people who can answer them, and a missing signature can be chased down the corridor. Travel is quoted by distance and agreed before we come, as the rule requires.
For companies with recurring needs, monthly resolutions, a steady flow of vendor forms, seasonal hiring, a standing appointment removes the scramble each time.
Preparing the room
- Every document complete and unsigned, with no blank spaces left open
- Current government-issued photo ID for each signer
- A list of who is signing which document, and in what capacity
- All signers available in one window, or separate appointments booked
- Any instruction from counsel or the receiving institution
What we will not do
We will not draft or amend your documents, advise on their terms, or choose which notarial certificate a document needs. Washington law prohibits a notary who is not an attorney from doing any of that. What we will do is turn up when we said, verify carefully, complete the certificates correctly, and hand every original back to you.
We work with businesses across Tacoma and the South Puget Sound, including outside office hours.