Notary Knowledge by Derrick Spruill

Arizona Handbook Trivia - Test Your Knowledge Tuesday

Derrick Spruill Season 9 Episode 421

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0:00 | 22:52

Are you ready to see how well you know the rules governing your commission? This Tuesday, we are putting your skills to the test with a fun challenge focused on state-specific guidelines. Join Eddie Montes Travis and Marylyn Lee Trotter as they walk through common scenarios and tricky questions found in the official manual to help you stay sharp and compliant.

• Identification Rules: Detailed Explanation regarding which forms of ID are acceptable and the specific requirements for expired documents according to state law.
• Journal Maintenance: Detailed Explanation of the mandatory entries required for every act and the protocols for keeping your records secure from unauthorized access.
• Fee Schedules: Detailed Explanation of the maximum amounts you can legally charge for various services to ensure you never overstep regulatory boundaries.
• Notarial Wording: Detailed Explanation on the differences between acknowledgments and jurats and why choosing the right certificate is critical for a valid act.

Keeping your knowledge fresh is the best way to protect your commission and provide excellent service to your clients. Whether you are a new pro or a seasoned veteran, these trivia questions offer a great way to verify you are following the latest rules. Please subscribe and like the podcast.

Show Notes:
• Overview of Arizona identification requirements for signers.
• Best practices for record-keeping and journal security.
• Breakdown of legal fees and service limitations.
• Quick guide to selecting the correct certificate wording.

Buy Becoming a Notary on Amazon

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Your Sunday Notary Reading:
Notary Public Foundation: Essential Guide to Core Duties, Ethics, and Commissioning on Amazon

Your Monday Notary Reading:
Notary Operational Excellence: Mastering Certificates, Journals, Ink, and Copy Certification on Amazon

Your Tuesday Notary Reading:
Notary Fraud Shield: Real-World Tactics, Red Flags, and Refusal Strategies on Amazon

Your Wednesday Notary Reading:
The Mobile Notary Blueprint: Launching and Managing Your On-Demand Business on Amazon

Your Thursday Notary Reading:
Notary Niche Navigator: Your Guide to Loan Signings, Apostilles, I-9s, and More on Amazon

Your Friday Notary Reading:
Notary Law & Liability: Understanding State Regulations, Insurance, and Avoiding UPL on Amazon

Your Saturday Notary Reading:
The Future Notary: Mastering RON, eNotary, and Complex Scenarios on Amazon

Quick & Easy Solutions: How to Increase Mobile Notary Business for More Success & Profit: with 37 Professional Tips on Amazon 

Executive Producer Derrick Spruill
Writers Marylyn Lee Trotter and Eddie Montes Travis
Graphics & Illustrations by Eddie Montes Travis
Music by Thomas Bynum
This Show is Produced by Magnificent Workz
Business Solutions

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SPEAKER_00

Are you a notary ready to move beyond the basics? Don't get caught unprepared with legal risks and climb pitfalls. You need a blueprint for success. Introducing notary knowledge reference guide in notary viable. This is your essential playbook. Learn to master your duties, build a thriving mobile business, and protect yourself from costly mistakes with expert advice. Find notary knowledge reference guide in notary bibliography by Derek's Ultra from Amazon.com. Learn to noble. Looks a million. Looks up. Mobile notary by Derek's Ule.com. Or download from Kindle today.

SPEAKER_02

You know, it is um it's incredibly easy to look at a rubber stamp and just see like a piece of office equipment. Right.

SPEAKER_03

It is plastic and ink.

SPEAKER_02

Exactly. You press it onto an ink pad, you press it on the paper, and you're done. It seems so simple.

SPEAKER_03

It really does.

SPEAKER_02

But when that stamp is an official notarial seal, um that tiny inked impression carries the full weight of state law. I mean, in that moment, you are holding the power to deter fraud, to finalize life-altering estate plans, or uh authorize million-dollar real estate transfers.

SPEAKER_03

Well, absolutely. The liability is huge.

SPEAKER_02

It is. And with that immense power comes incredible liability. Knowing your state's specific laws isn't just about passing some multiple choice test. It's the literal shield that protects the public and you know, protects you from catastrophic legal and financial consequences.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah, it truly is a massive responsibility that frankly often gets underestimated by new folks. A single seemingly minor administrative error in your workflow can just it can completely invalidate a crucial legal document.

SPEAKER_02

Which is terrifying.

SPEAKER_03

It is. It can hold up a family's home purchase or worse, expose a commissioned official to severe civil penalties. So the stakes, uh, they are much higher than most people realize when they first apply.

SPEAKER_02

That is the exact reality we are focusing on today. Welcome to Notary Knowledge. I'm Marilyn.

SPEAKER_03

And I'm Eddie.

SPEAKER_02

We are so glad to have you with us for this exploration. If you've been following along with our prior episodes, you know we've explored the high-level state variations in notarial law, uh, looking closely at how different jurisdictions handle everything from physical presence to digital identity verification.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah, and if you want to elevate your professional practice and really, you know, enhance your expertise, we highly encourage you to pick up the notary knowledge books by Derek Spruell.

SPEAKER_02

Oh, such a good resource.

SPEAKER_03

They are fantastic. They break down these really highly complex statutory frameworks into actionable, practical guidance that you can actually use in your daily workflow.

SPEAKER_02

Absolutely. They are an absolute must-read for anyone serious about the profession. Um, before we jump into today's analysis, please take a moment to rate the show, subscribe on your favorite platform, and share the podcast with others in the field. Your support is what helps us keep bringing you these high-level insights.

SPEAKER_03

So we have a very specific mission today. We are focusing intensely on one particular jurisdiction to see, well, to see how deep the rabbit hole goes.

SPEAKER_02

Yes. We are doing something a little special today, uh, Arizona Handbook Trivia.

SPEAKER_03

This is gonna be fun.

SPEAKER_02

I think so too. We are going to test your high-level knowledge of Arizona laws through 10 multiple choice questions. It's a fantastic way to check your blind spots and see how well you actually know the statutory guardrails.

SPEAKER_03

Right, because you might be surprised.

SPEAKER_02

Oh, for sure. So here's how it'll work. I will set up the context, ask the question, and give you three options. We will give you a couple of seconds to lock in your answer, you know, a genuine mental pause, and then we will reveal the correct choice and unpack the legal reasoning behind it.

SPEAKER_03

I love this format because it really forces you to think on your feet, which is exactly what happens when uh when a signer is sitting right across the desk from you.

SPEAKER_02

Exactly. Let's start right at the beginning with getting commissioned and look at the incredibly strict rules for how Arizona protects the physical office.

SPEAKER_03

It's intense.

SPEAKER_02

It really is. Arizona is currently making a massive paradigm shift to professionalize the role, moving far away from the older, uh, more passive registration systems of the past.

SPEAKER_03

Thank goodness for that.

SPEAKER_02

Right. So here is your first question, focusing on competency. Effective July 1, 2025. What new requirement must all new and renewing Arizona notaries pass? Is it A, a 10-day apprenticeship, B, a$10,000 bond, or C a 45 question open book competency exam? Take a couple of seconds and lock in your guests.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah, it's a major shift in how the state handles applications now.

SPEAKER_02

Okay. If you chose C, you nailed it.

SPEAKER_03

Starting in July 2025, Arizona requires an open book competency exam administered via permetric, and um, you had to score an 80% to pass.

SPEAKER_02

Wow. I always compare this to passing a driver's test before you are handed the keys to the state's legal trust. I mean, you wouldn't let someone drive a commercial truck down the highway just because they filled out a form and paid a fee. Right. That would be a disaster. So the state is finally taking steps to ensure you actually understand the rules of the road before you start processing real estate deeds. And regarding option B of the$10,000 bond, the actual requirement in Arizona is a$5,000 surety bond.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah. And that bond piece is a it's a critical misunderstanding in the industry. The bond is absolutely not liability insurance for the notary.

SPEAKER_01

That's such an important distinction.

SPEAKER_03

It really is. It is financial protection for the public. If you make a negligent mistake that causes financial harm to a signer, well, the public can file a claim against that$5,000 bond. Oh, wow. Exactly. The competency exam is essentially the state's way of preventing those mistakes from triggering the bond in the first place.

SPEAKER_02

That makes total sense. Let's move to question two, which deals with advertising and language. Linguistic overlaps can lead to major fraud, particularly in immigrant communities.

SPEAKER_03

This is a huge issue.

SPEAKER_02

It is. So here is the question. If an Arizona notary who is not an attorney advertises their services in Spanish, what specific term are they strictly prohibited from using? Is it A, official, B, notario, or C, abogado? Lock in your answer.

SPEAKER_03

This one has severe, and I mean severe legal consequences attached to it.

SPEAKER_02

Okay, the correct answer is B, notario publico.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah. This issue plagues a lot of states, but Arizona takes it incredibly seriously. In many civil law countries, uh like Mexico, for example, a notario publico is actually a highly trained attorney.

SPEAKER_02

Right.

SPEAKER_03

They are equivalent to a lawyer who drafts legal documents, conducts title searches, and handles complex corporate transactions.

SPEAKER_02

So when an immigrant from a civil law system sees a storefront in the U.S. advertising notario publico, they naturally and you know logically assume that person is a powerful lawyer who can help them with their immigration status or represent them in court.

SPEAKER_03

Exactly. Unscrupulous individuals have exploited that exact linguistic overlap to defraud vulnerable populations out of thousands of dollars.

SPEAKER_01

It's terrible.

SPEAKER_03

And often ruining their immigration cases in the process. Because of that, Arizona made it a class six felony, to use that term, if you aren't an attorney. A felony. Yes. It also results in the permanent revocation of your commission. And furthermore, if you advertise in literally any foreign language, you are legally mandated to include a conspicuous disclaimer in both English and that foreign language, stating, quote, I am not an attorney and cannot give legal advice about immigration or any other legal matters.

SPEAKER_02

Wow, a class 6 felony just for using two specific words on a business card, the state does not play around with consumer protection. Not at all. Which brings us to question three, focusing on the security of your physical tools. If you lose your official rubber seal, how long do you have to notify the Secretary of State by certified mail? A. 10 days, B. 30 days, or C immediately. Take a moment to think about that timeline.

SPEAKER_03

The clock starts ticking the second you realize it's gone.

SPEAKER_02

The answer is A ten days. Now I have to admit I struggle with this one. Ten days feels incredibly tight, especially if you just uh misplaced it during an office move and think it might turn up.

SPEAKER_03

Oh, I know. It's stressful.

SPEAKER_02

And the fine for failing to report it is up to$1,000. Why is the state so aggressive about a lost piece of rubber?

SPEAKER_03

Because in the eyes of the law, Marilyn, it isn't just rubber, it is a key that can unlock property transfers or authorize the emptying of a bank account.

SPEAKER_01

Right.

SPEAKER_03

If your stamp falls into the hands of a bad actor, they have the primary tool needed to forge legal documents. If we connect this to the bigger picture, back in 2018, Arizona law began requiring that specific commission numbers be included on the physical seals themselves.

SPEAKER_02

Ah, so it serves as a tracking mechanism.

SPEAKER_03

That is the whole point. Before commission numbers were required on the stamp, it was very difficult for law enforcement to trace a fraudulent stamp impression back to a specific compromised commission.

SPEAKER_02

Makes sense.

SPEAKER_03

Now, if a forged power attorney pops up with your commission number on it, the Secretary of State needs to know within 10 days that your stamp was compromised. If you didn't report it lost, the state assumes you were the one who pressed that stamp. You're completely on the hook.

SPEAKER_02

Accountability is literally baked into the hardware. That makes perfect sense. Well, we are going to take a moment to pause for a commercial break, but don't go anywhere. We have plenty more trivia coming up. We'll be right back. All right, welcome back. So we've talked about how heavily the state guards the physical rubber stamp, but how does that intense security translate to your daily workflow when you actually press that stamp to paper? Let's jump into question four on journaling.

SPEAKER_03

Let's do it.

SPEAKER_02

Arizona requires a mandatory paperbound journal, but it offers a very unique efficiency shortcut for busy professionals. If a client returns for a second notarization within a specific time frame, you don't need to capture their ID or their signature again. What is that time frame? A thirty days, B six months, or C one year. What do you think? I mean, I would naturally assume you need an ID every single time to prevent fraud.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah, but the state found an interesting compromise here.

SPEAKER_02

The correct answer is B, six months.

SPEAKER_03

What really stands out here is how Arizona attempts to balance extreme security with commercial efficiency. If you work in a corporate office, a bank, or say, a law firm, you might notarize documents for the exact same executive multiple times a week.

SPEAKER_02

Right. It would be exhausting to demand your boss's driver's license every single Tuesday.

SPEAKER_03

Exactly. It would bring business to a complete crawl. So as long as you rigorously verify their satisfactory evidence of identity the very first time, Arizona allows a six-month window. Yeah. During those six months, you don't have to re-examine the ID and you don't even have to force them to sign your physical journal again for subsequent acts.

SPEAKER_02

But wait, just to clarify, does that mean I just skip the journal entry entirely for that executive?

SPEAKER_03

Well, no, definitely not. You must still make a contemporaneous journal entry, meaning you write in the journal at the exact time the new notarial act occurs.

SPEAKER_02

Okay, good to know.

SPEAKER_03

You still have to record today's date, the new document description, and the fee charge. You just get to skip the physical ID inspection and the signature capture line, which you know drastically speeds up those repeat transactions.

SPEAKER_02

That is a massive time saver. All right, question five deals with resignation. What happens to the public record when you leave the profession entirely? When resigning a commission, what must a notary do with their journal? A. Destroy it. B keep it locked up for ten years? Or C, deliver it in the Secretary of State within three months. Take a guess.

SPEAKER_03

This one challenges how people view their own record books.

SPEAKER_02

The answer is C, you must deliver it to the Secretary of State within three months.

SPEAKER_03

And we should add a clarifying point here. This specific delivery rule applies to journals that contain entries dated less than five years ago. The underlying mechanism here is the public record doctrine.

SPEAKER_02

Meaning the journal doesn't actually belong to me, the individual who bought it.

SPEAKER_03

It belonged to the state of Arizona.

SPEAKER_02

Wow.

SPEAKER_03

You are merely a temporary custodian of those records. If a judge needs to subpoena a journal entry to prove a real estate transaction from two years ago was legitimate, the court shouldn't have to hire a private investigator to track you down at your new job or your retirement home.

SPEAKER_02

That would be ridiculous.

SPEAKER_03

Right. The state requires centralized access to those recent records to keep the legal system functioning smoothly.

SPEAKER_02

That is a critical mindset shift. You are managing state data. Let's move to question six, which is about fees. Let's talk about compensation in a strict fee cap environment. What is the maximum statutory fee an Arizona notary can charge for a standard act, like an acknowledgement, a girl, or even a remote online notarization? Is it A,$2, B,$10, or C$15? Lock in your answer.

SPEAKER_03

The numbers haven't really moved much over the years.

SPEAKER_02

True. The answer is B,$10.$10 per notary signature. And you have to post a fee schedule in a highly specific state mandated format in your workspace. But uh there is a huge democratic caveat here. There is strictly no charge allowed for notarizing absentee or early ballot affidavits.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah, and that is a vital statutory carve out for protecting the integrity and accessibility of the voting process.

SPEAKER_02

Absolutely.

SPEAKER_03

No citizen should face a financial barrier, even a$10 one, simply to cast their ballot.

SPEAKER_02

Now, I know anyone running a mobile business is asking ten dollars, how do mobile notaries afford gas and survive?

SPEAKER_03

Right. It doesn't sound like a lot.

SPEAKER_02

It's because travel fees are entirely separate from the notarial fee. But you can't just surprise a client with a massive travel bill when you show up.

SPEAKER_03

No, the principle of advance agreement is absolute in the handbook. The signer must agree to the specific travel fee before you ever get in your car. Makes sense. Many professional mobile notaries use the IRS standard mileage rate as a defensible baseline, which for 2025 is 70 cents per mile, often combined with an agreed-upon base trip fee to cover their drive time.

SPEAKER_02

Transparency is everything. All right, we are gonna take one more moment to pause for a quick commercial. We'll be right back with the digital side of things. Just go around. And we are back. So we've covered the daily physical grind, the ink, the paper journals. Let's pivot and explore the electronic frontier. Moving into the digital space, the electronic paper trail is incredibly heavy, and the geography gets very weird. Here is question seven on remote online notarization, or Ron. Ron completely changes the boundaries of physical presence. During a Ron session, where must the notary be physically located? A. Anywhere in the USB, within the same county as the signer, or C, physically within the borders of Arizona. Where do you have to sit?

SPEAKER_03

Well, the internet is everywhere, but the law isn't.

SPEAKER_02

So true. The answer is C. The notary must be physically within the borders of Arizona.

SPEAKER_03

This concept of jurisdiction is so fascinating. Yeah. The audiovisual technology is borderless, but your legal authority as a commissioned official is not.

SPEAKER_02

Right.

SPEAKER_03

The signer can be sitting in a cafe in Paris or a hotel in Tokyo, provided there is a legitimate U.S. connection to the document, like a U.S. court filing or a property transfer in the States, but you are anchored to the state that granted your authority.

SPEAKER_01

Wow.

SPEAKER_03

If you cross the state line into neighboring Nevada with your laptop and try to log in, you instantly lose the authority to perform an Arizona remote notarization.

SPEAKER_02

That geographic tether is wild to think about. You are projecting state authority through a webcam across the globe, but your feet must be planted on Arizona soil. Let's look at the data trail that projection leaves behind. Question eight is on R on records. How long must an Arizona notary retain the audiovisual recording of a remote notarization? A three years, B, five years, or C ten years. Take a second to lock that in.

SPEAKER_03

Think about server costs on this one.

SPEAKER_02

The answer is B, five years.

SPEAKER_03

Five years for both the electronic journal entry and the audiovisual recording itself. This is a massive data compliance requirement.

SPEAKER_02

I can't even imagine.

SPEAKER_03

Audiovisual files are gigantic compared to text. You aren't just storing a spreadsheet, you are storing encrypted, tamper-evident, high-definition video of the entire identity proofing and signing ceremony.

SPEAKER_02

Which explains why you have to rely on state-approved third-party vendors. You aren't just saving these massive files to a personal flash drive in a desk drawer. They have to be secure, redundantly backed up, and protected from unauthorized access.

SPEAKER_03

Exactly. The technology provider handles the heavy lifting of the server architecture, but the legal liability for ensuring those records are kept safe and accessible for five full years ultimately rests on your shoulders. You have to vet your vendors carefully.

SPEAKER_02

Let's step back from high-tech server architecture to a classic everyday problem that every notary faces. Question nine, missing certificates. A signer hands you a document that requires notarization, but there is no notarial certificate attached anywhere. No acknowledgement wording, no jurat wording, nothing. What must the notary do? A. Attach a juret just to be safe. B. Refuse the notarization outright. Or C, make the signer choose the act. What is the legal move here?

SPEAKER_03

This is where a lot of well-meaning professionals get into trouble.

SPEAKER_02

The answer is C. You must make the signer choose the act. Now, I have to challenge this logic. If a signer walks into an office with a random legal document, they almost certainly don't know the difference between a jurat and an acknowledgement.

SPEAKER_03

Oh, they almost never do.

SPEAKER_02

So if I am the trained expert in the room, why can't I just look at the document, see that it clearly requires an oath, and pick a juret for them?

SPEAKER_03

Because if you do that, you are crossing a very dangerous legal boundary into the unauthorized practice of law or UPL. Uh you are making a definitive legal determination about what type of authentication a specific document requires to be legally binding in court. Only the document's creator, the receiving agency, or a qualified attorney can make that call.

SPEAKER_02

So how do I practically handle the blank stare I'm gonna get when I ask them to choose?

SPEAKER_03

You explain the mechanical difference without giving advice. You say, um, an acknowledgement means you are declaring to me that you sign this willingly. A juret means I have to place you under a formal oath, and you swear the contents of this document are true.

SPEAKER_02

Okay, that makes sense.

SPEAKER_03

You could even show them sample certificate wording from your handbook, but they must be the one to physically point to the option they want. If they truly don't know and won't guess, you must halt the notarization and tell them to contact the agency that issued the document. You simply cannot choose for them.

SPEAKER_02

It feels restrictive in the moment, but it completely shields you from liability. All right, our final trivia question. Question 10. Foreign languages. Arizona's demographics necessitate unique language rules compared to almost every other jurisdiction. What is the interpreter exception in Arizona? A, you can use Google Translate to communicate. B, a physically present interpreter can translate the conversation, or C, the document must be translated by the Secretary of State. Lock in your final guess.

SPEAKER_03

This is a very rare carve out.

SPEAKER_02

The answer is B. A physically present interpreter can translate the conversation between the notary and the signer.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah, if we look at the broader national landscape, this is incredibly uncommon. The vast majority of states strictly ban the use of third-party interpreters during the notarial ceremony.

SPEAKER_02

Because it introduces a massive variable of liability. It's like a high-stakes game of telephone. How do I actually know the interpreter is accurately conveying the solemnity of the oath or accurately translating the signer's voluntary intent? They could be telling the signer anything.

SPEAKER_03

The risk of miscommunication or even intentional undue influence from a family member acting as the interpreter is huge. But Arizona recognizes the reality of its deeply diverse population.

SPEAKER_00

Right.

SPEAKER_03

They allow an interpreter to facilitate the conversation, but with incredibly strict guardrails. The interpreter must be physically present in the room. You cannot call someone on speakerphone or use a video translation service.

SPEAKER_02

Good to know.

SPEAKER_03

Furthermore, Arizona law strictly requires that the signer must ultimately sign the document in a language the notary actually understands, and the notarial certificate itself must be completed in a language the notary reads, writes, and understands.

SPEAKER_02

So you can use the interpreter to explain the mechanics of the appointment, but you cannot sign off on a notarial certificate written in a language you don't comprehend, just hoping the interpreter read the wording correctly to you. That's exactly the conversational communication can be interpreted, but the official legal record, the certificate, and the signature interaction must remain entirely within your scope of comprehension.

SPEAKER_03

It is a brilliant, delicate balance of providing public accessibility while maintaining the security of the public record.

SPEAKER_02

Which brings us to the end of our trivia session. That was intense, but digging into the why behind the rules is incredibly revealing.

SPEAKER_03

It really highlights how nuanced these state statutes are. You cannot rely on assumptions or general common sense. You have to know the specific mechanical rules of your own jurisdiction.

SPEAKER_02

So let's leave you with a broader concept to ponder as you go about your day. We just discussed how technology is making remote online notarization completely borderless, allowing an Arizona notary to verify the identity of a signer sitting in a cafe in Paris. Yet at the exact same time, we are governed by highly specific idiosyncratic state laws. Things like Arizona's six-month repeat signer rule or its unique physical interpreter exception don't exist everywhere.

SPEAKER_03

They really don't.

SPEAKER_02

As the world becomes more digitally connected and signers expect universal service, will these highly individualized state laws eventually have to harmonize into a single, unified national standard? Or will the clash between borderless technology and strict state boundaries just create entirely new cross-border legal frictions?

SPEAKER_03

It is the defining question for the future of the entire profession. How do we maintain local authority in a global digital environment?

SPEAKER_02

We really want to hear your thoughts on this and any questions you might have about your own state's quirks. Email your questions to Derek at Derek. Spruell.com. We will try to answer as soon as possible at the end of our shows.

SPEAKER_03

Executive producer Derek Spruell, lead writer Marilyn Lee Trotter, Graphics Eddie Montez Travis, Music Thomas Bynum, produced by Magnificent Works Business Solutions.

SPEAKER_01

Don't just be listeners of the knowledge, be doers of the knowledge. This is notary knowledge.

SPEAKER_00

Until next time.com, Barnes and Noble Bookstore, Bookofmillion.com, Bookshop.org, Mobile Notary by DerekSproul dot com, or download from Kindle to obtain your essential notary book to help with all your notarization starting today.