Legal experts named again in prestigious Legal 500
Specialists from law firm mfg Solicitors have once again been named among the best in the country...
mfg Solicitors LLP has the services of two experienced Notaries Public, Justin Parker and Susan Morrissy, who are both qualified as solicitors and Notaries Public.
What is a Notary Public?
A Notary is a qualified lawyer - a member of the third and oldest branch of the legal profession in England and Wales, and is appointed by the Court of Faculties of the Archbishop of Canterbury, subject to regulation by the Master of the Faculties. The rules which affect Notaries are very similar to the rules which affect Solicitors. They must be fully insured and maintain fidelity cover for the protection of their clients and the public. They must keep clients' money separately from their own and comply with stringent practice rules and rules relating to conduct and discipline. Notaries have to renew their practising certificates every year and can only do so if they have complied with the rules.
What are the functions of a Notary?
Notaries are primarily concerned with the authentication and certification of signatures, authority and capacity relating to documents for use abroad.
They are also authorised to conduct general legal practice (excluding the conduct of court proceedings) such as conveyancing and probate. They may exercise the powers of a Commissioner for Oaths.
What is Legalisation or an Apostille?
Many, but not all, countries require notarised documents to be legalised. Legalisation is a confirmatory step to make sure that the notaries' signature is genuine and recognised by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, and is required before the document can be used in the foreign jurisdiction. Documents may also be checked by foreign embassies to make sure that the Notary's seal and signature match the specimen retained by the embassy. Once the authenticity of the signature is confirmed a certificate is attached by the FCO which is called an Apostille.
Our Notaries can attend to many aspects of legalisation for you and your business.
What is The Faculty Office?
The Faculty Office is the administrative body of which the Master of the Faculties is head. Part of its responsibilities is the governance of the notaries. The Registrar of the Faculty Office oversees the training and qualification of notaries, has the responsibility for issuing the faculty and the annual practising certificate which, together, enable them to practise.
**Please note we are only able to deal with enquiries relating to Notary Public Services from our Kidderminster and Ludlow offices.**
Should you have any questions or queries or require any further information please do not hesitate to contact us by emailing susan.morrissy@mfgsolicitors.com or justin.parker@mfgsolicitors.com or by phoning us on 0845 55 55 321.