Georgia Law Controls The Closing Process Within The State of Georgia

In this article, I seek to answer questions regarding the closing of real property transactions in the State of Georgia.

Question: Can a Georgia notary close Georgia property in the State of Georgia?

Answer: No. If a Georgia notary were to close Georgia property, this would be the Unauthorized Practice of Law and result in the notary losing their privileges to notarize documents. The Supreme Court of Georgia decision and State Bar of Georgia Opinions are very clear in this regard.

This activity would violate the notary's commission and result in the forfeiture of the notary's commission as granted by the State of Georgia. Notaries must exercise good moral and ethical behaviors and no person may flout the law of the State of Georgia with impunity!

Likewise, financial institutions are regulated by the State of Georgia and, in addition to risking the loss of privileges to transact business in Georgia, called disbarment, individuals and entities alike are subject to criminal, civil and injunctive actions for illegal or unethical behaviors that violate Georgia law. Financial institutions that do not employ Georgia lawyers throughout the entire signing process are subject to RICO suits.

Question: Can a Georgia notary close non-Georgia property when the owners seek to close in the State of Georgia?

Answer: No. Public policy prohibits notaries from acting as lawyers. Period.

Notaries are not permitted to act outside the parameters of their commission to perform a function reserved for lawyers as expressed by the State Bar of Georgia and the Supreme Court of Georgia.

Notaries are not permitted to give legal advice and a closing may engender a discussion between the notary and borrower that would cause financial harm to the borrower.

Lawyers undergo a more thorough background screening, and are both highly educated and thoroughly examined before and as they practice law. Notaries serve in very restricted roles, usually limited to authentication of documents.

Question: Is it lawful for title companies to refer Georgia property owners to border states to close real estate loans with the goal that attorney fees can be avoided?

Answer: No. This behavior constitutes a conspiracy to commit a misdemeanor called the Unauthorized Practice of Law, and may result in the disbarment of lending institutions from doing business in Georgia.

In addition to disbarment, lending institutions, and notaries, risk criminal prosecution, civil fines, and an injunction. The notary risks the loss of his or her notary commission for failure to uphold the laws and public policy of the State of Georgia.

Possible consequences include the following:

• Criminal Prosecution for Unauthorized Practice of Law
• Civil Suit and Fines
• Civil Injunction
• Loss of Notary Commission
• Loss of State Bar License
• Loss of Lending License
• Criminal and Civil RICO prosecution
• Civil suits by borrowers and heirs
• Civil suits from attorneys for unfair business practices

Public policy and Georgia law prohibit Georgia notaries from performing roles reserved for lawyers. Notaries are not permitted to act outside the parameters of their commission to perform functions expressly reserved for lawyers as designated by the Supreme Court of Georgia.

Please read http://georgia-upl-law.blogspot.com/ and http://thenotaryeagle.blogspot.com/ for supplemental explanations as to the basis for my opinions. As in all matters, the definitive source for information is the State Bar of Georgia (http://www.gabar.org/).

Burton Fletcher, J.D., MBA
Member, State Bar of Georgia, State Bar of California
NNA Certified Notary Signing Agent
Commissioned Notary
Professor, Business Administration (Ret.)
Owner, Georgia Signing Agents.com, LLC
Tel: 229.245.8858
Fax: 310.868.2500
Desk1@GeorgiaSigningAgents.com

Copyright 2007. All Rights Reserved.