Legal Question in Business Law in California

Re: Notary Public - Conflict of Interest?

In general, a spouse can perform acts that the other spouse cannot because it would be a conflict of interest, such as serve legal papers. However, the rules for notaries may be tougher and I highly recommend checking with the state board that licenses and regulates notaries to get a correct, official answer.

Re: Notary Public - Conflict of Interest?

I agree with Mr. Whipple re checking the B&P Code. Without checking the law, I can't imagine any reason you can't. Law offices usually employ notaries for all sorts of services, including estate planning documents. As long as you carry out your duties properly, verify identity, obtain the thumbprint if necessary, and record everything correctly in your ledger, barring further legal restrictions contained in the B&P Code, it sounds like it's something you should be able to do.

Re: Notary Public - Conflict of Interest?

I agree with Mr. Whipple and Mr. Cohen -- you probably can do this but you should check the regulations first.

I note that many businesses have notaries on staff to handle their own papers and/or their clients'. If having someone on your payroll do this isn't a conflict I have a hard time seeing how having a spouse do it would be, but maybe the regulations forbid it anyway.