Before 10 a.m. today, I had two eerily similar conversations with two different notaries.

Both conversations centered around the same issue: whether a notary can proceed if the signer does not appear competent, aware, or able to understand what they are signing.

In both cases, the notaries gave me some pushback.

The response was essentially:

“But we verified who the signer is.”

“The document isn’t a big deal.”

“It’s just an LLC member resolution.”

“What’s the problem?”

And honestly, it made me stop and think.

Not because I agreed with them, but because I realized how often we, as an industry, focus so heavily on identification that we may not be talking enough about the other parts of a proper notarization.

We spend a lot of time discussing IDs. Acceptable identification. Expired identification. Credible witnesses. Personal knowledge. Name discrepancies. Whether the ID photo looks like the signer. Whether the signature matches.

And we should talk about those things. Identification matters.

But identification is not the whole notarization.

A signer being properly identified does not automatically mean the notarization should proceed.

There are other questions we need to be asking ourselves.

Does the signer appear aware of what is happening?

Do they understand that they are signing a document?

Are they signing willingly?

Is someone else pressuring them?

Are there red flags that make us uncomfortable moving forward?

These questions matter.

Now, let me be very clear. Notaries are not doctors. We are not psychologists. We are not attorneys. We are not making medical determinations, legal capacity determinations, or diagnosing anyone.

But that does not mean we ignore what is happening in front of us.

There is a difference between making a medical judgment and recognizing that something about the signing does not feel right.

If a signer appears confused, unaware, disoriented, unable to communicate willingness, or unable to understand the general nature of what is happening, that should give us pause.

That is not being difficult.

That is doing the job.

“But the Document Isn’t a Big Deal”

The other part of these conversations that really stayed with me was the idea that the document itself “wasn’t a big deal.”

And I understand where that thinking comes from.

When we hear “power of attorney,” “deed,” “trust,” or “estate document,” our fraud radar usually goes up. We know those documents can have serious consequences. We know they can be used to transfer property, give someone authority, or affect a person’s rights in significant ways.

So naturally, we tend to treat those documents with a higher level of caution.

But here is the question I keep coming back to:

Should we approach a notarization differently because we personally think one document is more important than another?

I do not think so.

A notary should not be deciding how careful to be based on whether the document feels “serious enough.”

A permission slip, an LLC resolution, a deed, a power of attorney, a trust document, a school form, a business document — the process still matters.

We do not notarize based on our personal opinion of the document’s importance.

We notarize based on the rules of our state, the type of notarial act requested, the identity of the signer, the signer’s willingness, the signer’s awareness, and whether we are comfortable that the notarization can lawfully and ethically proceed.

The document may change the risk level.

It should not change our standard of care.

Consistency Matters

I am a big believer in consistency.

Consistency protects the signer.

Consistency protects the notary.

Consistency protects the integrity of the notarial act.

When we start treating some notarizations as “less important” because the document seems routine, simple, or low-risk, we create problems for ourselves.

Because where is the line?

Who decides which documents deserve our full attention and which ones do not?

What seems minor to us may be significant to the signer, the business, the family, the court, the agency, or the transaction involved.

And more importantly, our role does not change just because the document looks simple.

We are still acting as notaries.

We are still public officials.

We still have duties.

We still have to follow the law.

We still have to be objective.

That means we should approach every notarization with the same basic process every single time.

Identify the signer.

Determine the type of notarial act.

Make sure the document is complete enough to notarize.

Confirm the signer is signing willingly.

Pay attention to whether the signer appears aware of what is happening.

Look for red flags.

Complete the certificate properly.

Record the notarization if your state requires it or if it is your best practice.

Those steps should not depend on whether the document is a deed or a simple resolution.

We Are Not There to Judge the Document’s Importance

One of the things I think notaries need to be careful about is confusing the importance of the document with the importance of the notarization.

Those are not the same thing.

We are not usually responsible for the contents of the document. We are not there to decide whether the agreement is good, bad, fair, unfair, wise, or unwise. We are not giving legal advice.

But we are responsible for the notarial act.

And the notarial act has value because it is supposed to be performed properly, consistently, and with attention to the signer in front of us.

That is what gives notarization its integrity.

If the signer is not aware, not willing, or does not appear to understand that they are signing, the problem is not solved by saying, “Well, it’s just a resolution.”

That misses the point.

The concern is not only what the document does.

The concern is whether the notarization itself can properly take place.

What Can a Notary Do?

When something feels off, the answer is not to panic or immediately assume fraud.

The answer is to slow down.

Ask neutral, appropriate questions.

For example:

“What document are you signing today?”

“Are you signing this voluntarily?”

“Do you want to sign this document?”

“Do you understand that this is your signature being notarized?”

You are not quizzing the signer on legal terms. You are not asking them to explain every clause. You are not giving advice about whether they should sign.

You are simply trying to determine whether they appear aware of what is happening and willing to proceed.

And if someone else keeps answering for them, pressuring them, rushing them, or trying to control the interaction, that is also something to pay attention to.

Sometimes the appropriate next step may be to pause the appointment.

Sometimes it may be to ask to speak directly with the signer.

Sometimes it may be to refuse the notarization if you cannot satisfy your state’s requirements or your duties as a notary.

And yes, sometimes that may frustrate people.

But our job is not to make everyone happy.

Our job is to perform the notarization properly.

The Bigger Lesson

The two conversations I had this morning reminded me that we need to keep talking about this.

Notarization is not just about checking an ID.

It is not just about matching a name.

It is not just about filling out a certificate.

And it is definitely not about deciding that some documents deserve careful notarization and others do not.

Every notarization deserves our attention.

Every signer deserves to be treated with care.

Every notary should have a consistent process.

We do not need to overstep our role. We do not need to diagnose people. We do not need to practice law.

But we do need to be present, observant, and willing to say, “I need to slow this down,” when something does not seem right.

Because at the end of the day, the signer’s identity matters.

But so does their awareness.

So does their willingness.

So does the integrity of the notarial act.

And “it’s not a big deal” should never be the standard we use to decide whether we do our job carefully.