Chapter 222

Section 1. For the purposes of this chapter, the following words shall, unless the context clearly requires otherwise, have the following meanings: ''Acknowledgment'', a notarial act in which an individual, at a single time appears in person before a notary public, is identified …

Section 10. Whoever knowingly destroys, defaces or conceals the records or official papers of a notary public shall forfeit not more than one thousand dollars and be liable for damages to any person injured thereby.

Section 11. Persons serving in or with the armed forces of the commonwealth or other reserve component commands when conducting mobilization exercises and soldier readiness processing or the armed forces of the United States or their dependents, wherever located, may acknowledge …

Section 12. Notwithstanding section 22 or any other general or special law to the contrary, a notary public who is an attorney or who is employed by an attorney and by virtue of such employment performs notary public duties shall not be required to maintain a journal.

Section 13. (a) A person qualified for a notary public commission shall be at least 18 years of age and reside or have a regular place of work or business within the commonwealth. (b) In the governor's discretion, an application for appointment, reappointment or renewal of a comm…

Section 14. A person commissioned as a notary public may perform notarial acts in any part of the commonwealth for a term of 7 years unless the commission is earlier revoked or the notary public resigns.

Section 15. (a) A notary public may perform the following notarial acts: (i) acknowledgments; (ii) oaths and affirmations; (iii) jurats; (iv) signature witnessings; (v) copy certifications; (vi) issuing summonses for witnesses pursuant to section 1 of chapter 233; (vii) issuing s…

Section 16. (a) A notary public shall not perform a notarial act if: (i) the principal is not in the notary public's presence at the time of notarization, except as specifically provided in this chapter; (ii) the principal is not identified by the notary public through satisfacto…

Section 17. (a) A notary public shall not advise clients, offer legal advice or represent or advertise the notary public as a legal specialist or consultant unless the notary public is an attorney licensed to practice law in the commonwealth. A notary public shall not state or im…

Section 18. (a) The attorney general or district attorney may prosecute any person committing a violation of this chapter. A person convicted of committing a violation of this chapter shall be punished for a first offense by a fine of not more than $1,000 or by imprisonment in a …

Section 19. A notary public shall perform a notarial act for any person requesting such act who tenders the fee provided for in section 41 of chapter 262 or any other general or special law or executive order, unless: (i) the notary public knows or has reason to believe that the …

Section 1A. Justices of the peace and notaries public shall be appointed and their commissions shall be issued for the commonwealth. Justices of the peace and notaries public shall have jurisdiction throughout the commonwealth when acting under the sole authority of such a commis…

Section 20. (a) A notary public shall not be authorized or required to investigate, ascertain or attest to the lawfulness, propriety, accuracy or truthfulness of a document or transaction involving a notarial act. (b) Except as may be required by the office of the state secretary…

Section 21. A notary public who is not an attorney who advertises notarial services in a language other than English shall include in the advertisement, notice, letterhead or sign the following statement prominently displayed in the same language: ''I am not an attorney and I hav…

Section 22. (a) Except as provided in subsection (f), a notary public shall keep, maintain, protect and provide for lawful inspection a chronological official journal of notarial acts performed by the notary public. A journal may be created on a fixed tangible medium or in an ele…

Section 23. Notwithstanding section 41 of chapter 262, no fee shall be charged by a notary public to notarize a signature on an absentee ballot identification envelope or other voting materials or on any application or claim by a United States military veteran for a pension, allo…

Section 24. If a notary public's commission expires, is resigned or revoked, the notary public shall, as soon as reasonably practicable, destroy or deface all notary seals and stamps so that they shall not be used and shall retain the journal and records for 7 years after the dat…

Section 25. Within 10 days after the change of a notary public's name, residence, business address or mailing address, the notary public shall send to the state secretary a signed notice of the change, providing both the old and new information.

Section 26. A notary public's commission may be revoked for official misconduct as defined in section 1 or for other good cause as determined by the governor with the consent of the governor's council.

Section 27. (a) A notary public may select 1 or more tamper-evident technologies to perform notarial acts with respect to electronic records. A person shall not require a notary public to perform a notarial act with respect to an electronic record with a technology that the notar…

Section 28. (a) A notary public physically located in the commonwealth may perform a notarial act using communication technology for a remotely-located individual who is the principal in a notarial act if the notary public: (i) (A) has personal knowledge of the identity of the re…

Section 29. A notary public shall not use, sell or offer to sell to another person or transfer to another person for use or sale any personal information obtained under section 28 that identifies a remotely-located individual, a witness to a remote notarization or a person named …

Section 3. The governor, with the advice and consent of the council, shall appoint commissioners to administer to public officers the oaths of office required by the constitution. Upon administering such oaths, the commissioners shall forthwith make return thereof, with the date …

Section 4. The governor, with the advice and consent of the council, may appoint commissioners in the states, territories, districts and dependencies of the United States, and one or more commissioners in every foreign country, to hold office for three years from the date of thei…

Section 5. A person appointed commissioner in a state, territory, district or dependency of the United States shall, within three months after his appointment, take and subscribe an oath before a justice of the peace or other magistrate of the town or county where he resides, or …

Section 6. A commissioner may, in his state, territory, district, dependency or country, administer oaths and take depositions, affidavits and acknowledgments of deeds and other instruments, to be used or recorded in this commonwealth, and the proof of such deeds, if the grantor …

Section 7. The state secretary shall prepare and forward to each commissioner appointed under section four, instructions and forms in conformity to law, and a copy of the three preceding sections.

Section 8. (a) When taking an acknowledgment of an instrument or administering an oath for an instrument filed in court, a justice of the peace, notary public or other person duly authorized shall print or type such justice of the peace, notary public or other person's name direc…

Section 9. Whoever presumes to act as a justice of the peace or notary public after the expiration of his commission, and after receiving notice of such expiration, shall be punished by a fine of not less than one hundred nor more than five hundred dollars.