The Louisiana Civil Law Notary Journal Signed & Sealed VOLUME XXIV ISSUE I Louisiana Notary Association January 2016 XXIV, ISSUE I SIGNED & SEALED PAGE 1 Signed & Sealed ABOUT THIS ISSUE The Louisiana Civil Law Notary Journal Our new full color issue contains a recap of the 2016 convention highlights and a new series entitled Karen Dunn and Lisa McCoy Notary2Notary.. Editors Published by the Louisiana Notary Association TABLE OF CONTENTS www.lna.org Divorce Pleadings-To Do or Not to Do .................. 4 Louisiana Notary Association is a 501(c)(3) Non-profit Educational A look at the consequences of preparing Corporation organized for the public divorce pleadings. benefit exclusively for educational and historical purposes to provide information and educational A Treasure Chest of Knowledge opportunities regarding the public 2015 Convention Recap ........................................ 8 office of the commissioned Louisiana Highlights of the 2015 Annual Meeting and Convention. Civil Law Notary and the official duties of the office, and to preserve the traditions and cultural heritage Louisiana Notaries Public ...................................... 9 afforded by the unique and superior Reprinted from Around the Bar, November 2015 principles of law as set forth in the with permission of the author. Louisiana Civil Code. Address written correspondence to: Notary Nest ........................................................... 14 Fourth in a series of brain teasers; this one features Editor: Signed & Sealed Louisiana Notary Association terms specific to mandates. 8550 United Plaza Blvd., Suite 1001 Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70809 FEATURES or email to [email protected] Photos from the 2015 Annual Meeting and Convention .......................................................... 6-7 Submissions for publication are welcome, and are accepted subject Notary2Notary………………………………………..12 to editorial control of publisher. This publication and the material contained herein is protected by 2016 Board of Directors …………………………...13 copyright and may not be reproduced without permission of the DEPARTMENTS publisher. Please do not make unauthorized copies of this publication. If you want additional copies, contact us at 225-927-7001. PRESIDENT’S PERSPECTIVE ............................... 2 For advertising rates, call 225-927- 7001. LEGISLATIVE NEWS .............................................. 3 Scott Kirkpatrick gives us a preview of the 2016 The Louisiana Notary Association is the Premier Provider of Legislative session Education and Information for and about Notaries in the State of Louisiana. XXIV, ISSUE I SIGNED & SEALED PAGE 2 PRESIDENT’S PERSPECTIVE NEW YEAR, NEW OPPORTUNITIES I, like many, see the New Year as a new beginning; a chance to renew my efforts to grow personally and professionally, and improve my relationships with others. As I begin my third term as President of the Louisiana Notary Association, I see many opportunities to build upon the association’s successes of the past few years. We have several great assets at our disposal – an experienced Board of Directors, a loyal membership, an outstanding lobbying group – all dedicated to taking our association to the next level. This year, my primary goal will be to focus on the “big picture” and work to better leverage these assets so that the LNA can move forward and expand its reputation as the premier professional organization of Louisiana Notaries Public. As part of this push to maximize the LNA’s resources, I am excited to announce the following changes to LNA’s committee assignments for 2016: Membership – Sharon Toups and Amanda Vaussine, Co-Chairs Publications – Karen Dunn and Lisa McCoy, Co-Chairs Education– Lisa McCoy and Luke Morris, Co-Chairs Legal Research – Theresa Martin and Pam Alonso, Co-Chairs Convention – Lisa McCoy and Pam Alonso, Co-Chairs These members are strongly committed to our organization and are very excited to serve in their new roles. This year I chose to appoint co-chairpersons for each committee because I believe it will promote a sense of teamwork and provide an opportunity to share responsibilities and not put so much work on one individual. Further, I have tasked each committee to reach out into our organization and recruit at least one volunteer who is currently not serving in any capacity. I am strongly committed to expanding our base of volunteers; committees are the perfect opportunity for members to lend their talents and get a chance to work with the LNA’s leadership. In addition to the new committee assignments, I have decided to spin off management of our Shop Talks into its own committee. I am pleased to announce that Lisa Nassour, Shop Talk Coordinator in Lafayette, has agreed to chair this committee. Lisa, along with the Shop Talk coordinators around the state (who will be members of this committee), will be tasked with improving Shop Talk attendance and developing plans to expand the LNA’s reach into areas of the state currently underserved. We have a strong group of Shop Talk coordinators, and, by structuring a committee around them, I feel we can best utilize their talents and create a sense of community that is all important in maintaining our member base. The LNA has many other plans on tap for 2016, including our Biennial Customary Fee Survey (launching this spring), another overhaul of our website (late summer, early fall), our Annual Meeting and Convention (fall) and an improved Notary2Notary messaging platform (late summer, early fall). In the meantime look for more online surveys, more Members Only benefits, more educational offerings and more opportunities to volunteer. Stay tuned to LNA.org and your monthly Association News for more information. I am very excited about serving as your President in 2016, and I am looking forward to the support from our members to make our plans a reality. Best of luck in the New Year, and hope to see you soon! Darryl P. LeJeune LNA President XXIV, ISSUE I SIGNED & SEALED PAGE 3 Legislative News Louisiana Notary Issues for 2016 By Scott Kirkpatrick 2016 is expected to be a busy year for notary the recording. The report from the Law Insti- issues in Louisiana. In addition to the begin- tute is not due until February 2017. ning of new, four-year terms for legislators and statewide elected officials, notaries have a number of issues to consider. The Louisi- The LNA has agreed to hold a Notary Day at ana Bar Association has established a notary the Legislature during the 2016 legislative committee charged to “review current notarial session. This will be an excellent opportuni- law and legislation to ensure they provide ty for notaries to educate lawmakers about adequate protection to the public.” Possible their work in communities throughout the items to be addressed include an increase in state. The LNA will provide additional de- notary fees to support access to justice initia- tails on this event as they are available. tives, and the administrative committee rec- ommends ways attorneys can effectively compete against notaries. The LSBA com- mittee is due to release its findings in the first part of 2016. Discussions continue about a possible con- tinuing education requirement for non- attorney notaries. How many hours would be required, the likely cost of continuing educa- FIND US ON tion, and the administrative framework around any continuing education requirement are all items that would need to be resolved before a requirement is put into place. Pursuant to Concurrent House Resolution 218, the Louisiana Law Institute has been tasked to study the need for electronic notary law. This resolution cites the enactment of a Virginia law on this matter that required real time signal transmission and maintenance of XXIV, ISSUE I SIGNED & SEALED PAGE 4 DIVORCE PLEADINGS, TO DO OR NOT TO DO? By Lisa McCoy We all know that notaries are not authorized problem with notarizing the form after filling to practice law. La. R.S. 27:212 (B) specifi- in the information. This notary strongly disa- cally removes the prohibitions for notaries grees. It is my opinion that once we begin from “performing any act necessary or inci- filing in the blanks, we open ourselves up to dental to the exercise of power and func- giving legal advice. Some of these plead- tions of the office of notary public…” There- ings have complicated wording and once fore, notaries need to be familiar with the the customer asks “what does this mean” laws surrounding the functions we perform. and we respond, we have given legal ad- But in no way does this statute extend the vice. I also believe that even filling in the power of giving legal advice or opinions as a blanks constitutes preparation of legal notary. We should not give legal advice at pleadings. While we did not complete the any time. When asked a question that entire pleading, we did prepare part of the would appear to require legal advice, it is pleading. And let’s not lose sight of the fact our obligation to advise our customer that that these fill in the blank forms are legal we are prohibited from giving legal advice. pleadings. They will be filed in a court of As notaries, we should also refrain from pre- law for the purpose of obtaining a divorce. paring documents that would give the slight- One notary’s opinion was that these are not est appearance of practicing law. real pleadings since they are fill in the blank forms. Black’s Law Dictionary defines a pleading as “A formal document in which a Over the past years, more and more individ- party to a legal proceeding sets forth or re- uals have called upon this notary to “help” sponds to allegations, claims, denials or de- write their uncontested divorce “papers.” fenses” and “a system of defining and nar- Other notaries have also asked advice rowing the issues in a lawsuit whereby the about “filling in” and notarizing these forms parties file formal documents alleging their for their clients.