Foundational Fridays: The Golden Rule of Physical Presence

Welcome to another episode of Foundational Fridays where we look at the most important rules for every professional. Today, Eddie Montes Travis and Marylyn Lee Trotter discuss why meeting in person is the absolute standard that keeps our industry safe and legal. We focus on the Golden Rule of Physical Presence to ensure you never put your commission at risk.

• Face-to-Face Mandates: A clear look at why the signer must be in your actual physical sight at the moment the document is signed to prevent identity theft.
• Assessing Awareness: Being in the same room allows you to judge if the signer is acting of their own free will and understands what they are signing.
• Fraud Prevention: How physical proximity serves as the first line of defense against forged signatures and pressure from outside parties.
• Compliance Standards: Staying within the law by refusing to perform acts where the signer is only available via phone or video when the law requires a physical meeting.

Mastering these basics is what separates a true professional from the rest. By following these rules, you protect yourself and the people you serve. If you found this helpful, please subscribe and like the podcast for more weekly insights!

Show Notes:
• The absolute necessity of the signer appearing in person before the official.
• How physical presence helps verify the identity and mental capacity of the signer.
• Common legal traps to avoid when clients ask for shortcuts.
• Why physical interaction is the best tool for fraud prevention.

Buy Becoming a Notary on Amazon

Notary Knowledge Reference Guide and Notary Bible on Amazon

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

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

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:04

Since you started your notary business, strive for excellence. Introducing the book Notary Operational Excellence by Derek Spruel. Build your business on a beacon of precision and trust with expert advice. Check out Notary Operational Excellence by Derek Spruel from Amazon.com, Barnes Noble, Books of Million, Bookshop.org, Mobile Notary by Derek Spruell.com, or download from Kindle today.

SPEAKER_01 0:33

Welcome to Notary Knowledge. And um, if you are joining us today, you are probably right in the middle of building your toolkit for this career.

SPEAKER_02 0:42

Yeah, exactly.

SPEAKER_01 0:43

Whether you are like a complete novice or just stepping into an entry-level position, we are so incredibly glad you're here with us.

SPEAKER_02 0:50

We really are. And you know, building a rock solid career, it means equipping yourself with the right resources. Right. So we highly recommend picking up the Notary Knowledge Books by Derek Spruel. For today's specific topic, you really need to read the Sunday reading.

SPEAKER_01 1:04

Oh, that's a good one.

SPEAKER_02 1:05

Yeah. It's titled The Notary Public Foundation: Your Essential Guide to Core Duties, Ethics, and Commissioning. You can find all of this and honestly so much more on the Notary Knowledge website.

SPEAKER_01 1:16

Absolutely. And, you know, while you are expanding that library of yours, make sure to check out our video podcast, No Notary, with Eddie Montez Travis.

SPEAKER_02 1:24

Yes, please do.

SPEAKER_01 1:26

And if you are pressed for time, tune into my quick tip series, Maryland's 90 seconds of notary. All of these resources are basically designed to ensure you are confident and uh protected every single time you pick up your stand.

SPEAKER_02 1:41

That is the goal.

SPEAKER_01 1:42

Which perfectly brings us to today's core focus. Today we are doing Foundational Fridays, the Golden Rule of Physical Presence.

SPEAKER_02 1:50

The Golden Rule. I mean, it sounds a little dramatic, sure, but it is literally the bedrock of this entire profession. Right.

SPEAKER_01 1:56

It's non-negotiable.

SPEAKER_02 1:58

Exactly. And um, we're pulling insights today from a bunch of great sources state handbooks, the National Notary Association, the John Marshall Law Review, and of course Derek Sprill's notary knowledge series.

SPEAKER_01 2:08

Right. A really thorough look at the source material today. Right. And again, the John Marshall Law Review actually brought up a historical legal maxim that frames this perfectly.

SPEAKER_02 2:16

Oh, the Latin one.

SPEAKER_01 2:17

Yeah, yeah. It's a phrase you have probably heard in a million courtroom dramas. habeas corpus.

SPEAKER_02 2:22

Habeus corpus, right, which literally translates to you have the body.

SPEAKER_01 2:26

Exactly. And usually that refers to like bringing a prisoner before a judge.

SPEAKER_02 2:31

Right. In a criminal court.

SPEAKER_01 2:32

But applying it to this profession is just a brilliant mental framework. You have the body.

SPEAKER_02 2:37

Yeah. I love that.

SPEAKER_01 2:38

It means the physical breathing human being whose signature you are notarizing, they must be standing right there in front of you.

SPEAKER_02 2:44

Yes. And um to understand why this mandate is so ruthlessly strict, we have to look at what you are actually being hired to do.

SPEAKER_01 2:52

Aaron Powell Right, which gets misunderstood all the time.

SPEAKER_02 2:55

Oh, constantly. A really common misconception among entry-level professionals is that their job is to like read a document and validate that the contents are legally sound.

SPEAKER_01 3:07

Oh wow. Yeah, which is basically practicing law without a license.

SPEAKER_02 3:10

Exactly. It's a huge mistake. Your core function is entirely different. You act as an impartial witness to the signing of that document.

SPEAKER_01 3:17

It's the signing itself.

SPEAKER_02 3:18

Right. Your entire purpose is to verify three very specific things. First, the identity of the human being holding the pen. Right. Second, their willingness to sign without being forced. And third, their mental competence to understand what they're actually signing.

SPEAKER_01 3:34

Aaron Powell Yeah. If you look at a standard document, like an acknowledgement, you are literally signing your own name to a statement that says this specific person appeared before me today.

SPEAKER_02 3:44

Appeared before me, exactly.

SPEAKER_01 3:46

I was um I was trying to picture the mechanics of doing this without the person present, and it just makes absolutely no sense.

SPEAKER_02 3:53

It's impossible.

SPEAKER_01 3:54

Right. Trying to notarize a signature for someone who isn't in the room is like a bouncer at a crowded club trying to check a patron's ID over a phone call.

SPEAKER_02 4:04

Oh, that's a perfect analogy.

SPEAKER_01 4:06

Right. You have someone on the line saying, Trust me, I'm 21, my ID is right here. You literally cannot verify if the person speaking is the person pictured on the card. Right.

SPEAKER_02 4:15

You can't see them.

SPEAKER_01 4:16

You have to see their face, look at the physical security features of the card, and like make that real-world connection.

SPEAKER_02 4:23

And the courts take that exact same view, just with way higher legal stakes. There is this ruling from a Texas court in our sources that perfectly illustrates the absurdity of skipping this step.

SPEAKER_01 4:34

Oh, the dentist one.

SPEAKER_02 4:36

Yeah, yeah. The court was looking at a deed of trust that a notary tried to acknowledge over a phone call.

SPEAKER_01 4:43

Unbelievable.

SPEAKER_02 4:44

I know. And invoiding the document, the judge declared that a notary can no more perform by telephone those acts which require a personal appearance than a dentist can pull a tooth by telephone.

SPEAKER_01 4:54

I mean, it is a pungent analogy, but it really highlights the inflexibility of state laws. For instance, you look at North Carolina law, and they don't just say presence, they actually mandate close physical proximity. Trevor Burrus, Jr.

SPEAKER_02 5:07

Right. They get really specific.

SPEAKER_01 5:09

Yeah. The law specifically requires you to be close enough to freely see and communicate with the signer and physically exchange records back and forth.

SPEAKER_02 5:16

And then you look at California and their civil code explicitly prohibits relying solely on personal knowledge of a signer. Trevor Burrus, Jr.

SPEAKER_01 5:24

Right, which trips a lot of people up.

SPEAKER_02 5:25

It really does. If your lifelong best friend calls you and says, hey, stamp this for me, you know it's me. California law says that personal knowledge is completely irrelevant. Wow. Yeah. If they aren't standing in front of you, the transaction cannot happen. Full stop.

SPEAKER_01 5:38

Now, a lot of new professionals will immediately point to the internet and ask about remote online notarization or RON.

SPEAKER_02 5:45

Oh, sure. Ron comes up all the time.

SPEAKER_01 5:47

The assumed technology has like created a loophole where physical presence is no longer required.

SPEAKER_02 5:53

Right. But Ron does not bypass the requirement, it just achieves it through a highly regulated virtual medium.

SPEAKER_01 6:00

Right. It's not just a casual video call.

SPEAKER_02 6:02

No, not at all. You aren't just hopping on FaceTime. Ron platforms use state-approved, secure, live, two-way audio video technology.

SPEAKER_01 6:11

Yeah. And the screening process is often way more intense than an in-person meeting.

SPEAKER_02 6:14

Oh, significantly. The technology requires knowledge-based authentication where the signer has to answer these complex background questions and credential analysis software to verify the ID.

SPEAKER_01 6:25

Right. So the golden rule of presence hasn't disappeared at all?

SPEAKER_02 6:28

No, it has simply evolved to require a digital equivalent of having the body. Insta commercial break marker.

SPEAKER_01 6:34

So we're back. And um if the rule is this foundational, I mean if state laws, courts, and even advanced technology all revolve around this singular requirement, why is feeling to require personal appearance the leading cause of commission revocation and lawsuits? It's a great question. Right. It seems like it should be the easiest rule to follow. Just look at the person.

SPEAKER_02 6:56

You would think so, but it becomes incredibly difficult because of human psychology and social friction.

SPEAKER_01 7:01

Social friction. That makes sense.

SPEAKER_02 7:02

Yeah. When you are sitting at your desk and a complete stranger walks in off the street asking you to notarize a document without an ID, your defenses are naturally up.

SPEAKER_01 7:12

Right. It's super easy to say no to a stranger.

SPEAKER_02 7:14

Exactly. But your guard drops completely when you are dealing with people you know or trust or depend on for your livelihood.

SPEAKER_01 7:22

Friends, relatives, co-workers.

SPEAKER_02 7:25

Or your boss. The John Marshall Law Review actually breaks down how this pressure manifests into two common traps.

SPEAKER_01 7:31

Okay, let's hear them.

SPEAKER_02 7:32

The first is scenario A, the imposter. This happens when a trusted associate brings in a stranger. Maybe they introduce the stranger as their spouse or their new business partner. And oh look, the stranger conveniently left their ID at home.

SPEAKER_01 7:47

Conveniently.

SPEAKER_02 7:48

Right. So your trusted associate leans on your relationship saying, Come on, do me a favor. You know me, you can trust us. Don't make us drive all the way back across town.

SPEAKER_01 7:56

And because you want to be a team player, you want to be helpful, you waive the ID requirement.

SPEAKER_02 8:01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 8:02

And you fill out a certificate stating you verified their identity.

SPEAKER_02 8:05

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 8:05

And boom, you just committed official misconduct.

SPEAKER_02 8:08

And you potentially aided in a fraud.

SPEAKER_01 8:10

Wow.

SPEAKER_02 8:11

Then there is the second trap, which is scenario B, the absent associate. This is incredibly common in office environments. Your boss or a good friend walks up to your desk with a contract that is already signed. They say, My husband is out of town on business, but you know his signature, you've seen it a hundred times.

SPEAKER_01 8:30

Just stamp it for me.

SPEAKER_02 8:31

Exactly. We really need this filed before five o'clock. Just stamp it.

SPEAKER_01 8:35

The phrasing is always so casual, isn't it? Just stamp it. It completely minimizes the legal weight of your seal.

SPEAKER_02 8:40

It really does.

SPEAKER_01 8:41

And you know, we have a story from the National Notary Association sources that shows exactly how bad this can get. It's a real case of a woman who suffered what can only be called a total financial holocaust.

SPEAKER_02 8:53

Oh, this case is devastating.

SPEAKER_01 8:55

It is. Her ex-husband and his employer needed a document notarized. So they approached a notary who happened to be an employee of their company.

SPEAKER_02 9:04

Right. So they immediately leveraged that boss employee dynamic.

SPEAKER_01 9:07

Exactly. They brought in a deed of trust. And, you know, for anyone new to the field, a deed of trust is basically the document that ties a property to a loan. It's the paper that says, if I don't pay this debt, you can take my house.

SPEAKER_02 9:20

Huge stakes.

SPEAKER_01 9:21

Massive. So the boss pressured the employee to notarize the document, even though the victim, the ex-wife whose house was actually on the line, was nowhere near the victim.

SPEAKER_02 9:30

It wasn't even there.

SPEAKER_01 9:31

Right. Her signature was forged. But the notary caved to the pressure from her boss, bypassed the physical presence requirement, and illegally stamped the forged document.

SPEAKER_02 9:40

And that single moment of yielding to office pressure literally weaponized a forged document.

SPEAKER_01 9:46

Exactly. Because the legal system trusts a notary seal.

SPEAKER_02 9:50

Right. When the court saw that seal, they assumed the victim had been sitting in the room willingly signing away her property.

SPEAKER_01 9:57

And that is why she lost her home. She lost her small business, her life savings vanished, her retirement was drained, and the college funds she built for her children were entirely wiped out.

SPEAKER_02 10:08

It's horrific. The notary was actively participating in a conspiracy to defraud, whether they realized it or not.

SPEAKER_01 10:15

Okay, let me push back on this rule for a second, just to explore the gray areas.

SPEAKER_02 10:18

Sure, go for it.

SPEAKER_01 10:19

What if the signer isn't across town or out of the state? What if the person is physically under the same roof, just not in the same room?

SPEAKER_02 10:27

Oh, like in a house.

SPEAKER_01 10:29

Yeah. Imagine you were called to a house, the husband signs a document in the living room, but the wife is in the bedroom with the door closed. You can hear her voice. Is close enough acceptable?

SPEAKER_02 10:41

Close enough will absolutely get you sued.

SPEAKER_01 10:43

Really?

SPEAKER_02 10:44

Oh yeah. We can look at this fascinating 1984 Nebraska Supreme Court case to see why this fails. It's Christensen V Arenter, a real estate agent who was also a commissioned notary, went to a home to notarize signatures on a $50,000 real estate contract. Right. The husband signed in the living room, right in front of the notary. The wife, however, was in another room behind a closed door, nursing a baby. Okay. The notary stood in the hallway, conversed with her through the wooden door, and allowed her to acknowledge the contract completely out of sight.

SPEAKER_01 11:18

But they were in direct voice contact in the exact same house. I mean, from a layman's perspective, that feels like presence.

SPEAKER_02 11:25

It does feel like it, right. But the Nebraska Supreme Court voided the contract entirely because she wasn't in the notary's direct presence.

SPEAKER_01 11:33

Wow.

SPEAKER_02 11:33

Think about the mechanics of your job, verifying willingness. If you are looking at a wooden door, how do you know the husband doesn't have a weapon pointed at the wife on the other side?

SPEAKER_01 11:43

Oh, jeez. That's dark, but yeah.

SPEAKER_02 11:46

How do you know she isn't under the influence of heavy medication? How do you even know it's actually the wife speaking and not someone else pretending to be her?

SPEAKER_01 11:54

You don't. You can't.

SPEAKER_02 11:55

Exactly. You cannot verify willingness or competence without sensory input. You have to see their face, observe their body language, and look them in the eye. Insert a commercial break marker.

SPEAKER_01 12:06

All right, welcome back. We have looked at the theory in the case law, but let's see how this pressure actually manifests in the real world.

SPEAKER_02 12:14

Yeah, it gets messy.

SPEAKER_01 12:15

It really does. We have this interactive segment we're doing called Good Question, What Would You Do?

SPEAKER_02 12:21

I love this segment.

SPEAKER_01 12:23

Yeah. We pulled actual scenarios from the NNA hotline sources to test your knowledge. Let's walk through a few of these and examine how a professional should respond.

SPEAKER_02 12:31

Let's do it.

SPEAKER_01 12:32

Okay, scenario one. This involves a notary named Leo from Indiana, and it deals with a jail ID situation.

SPEAKER_02 12:38

Oh boy.

SPEAKER_01 12:39

Right. A mother reported that her son was incarcerated. While he was in jail, the son's girlfriend managed to get her hands on a power of attorney and a deed transferring the son's property over to herself.

SPEAKER_02 12:50

Okay, red flag right there.

SPEAKER_01 12:51

Massive red flag.

SPEAKER_02 12:52

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 12:53

So Leo, the notary, witnessed the girlfriend's signature. But Leo never actually traveled to the jail to witness the son's signature.

SPEAKER_02 13:00

You've gotta be kidding me.

SPEAKER_01 13:02

Nope. Instead, the girlfriend took the papers into the jail, allegedly had the son sign them, and brought them back to Leo's desk to be stamped.

SPEAKER_02 13:10

This is a catastrophic failure by the notary.

SPEAKER_01 13:13

Break down why.

SPEAKER_02 13:14

Well, a power of attorney is a document that literally hands over control of your life, your finances, your property, your healthcare decisions, all to someone else. Right. By failing to go to the jail and look the son in the eye, Leo completely abandoned his duty to protect the absent signer. He has zero proof that the son actually signed it.

SPEAKER_01 13:34

Right, none at all.

SPEAKER_02 13:35

Even if the signature matches, the notary has no idea if the girlfriend threatened him during that jail visit. Because Leo bypassed physical presence, that deed transfer is entirely vulnerable to being voided in court.

SPEAKER_01 13:48

And the liability falls on him.

SPEAKER_02 13:49

Yes. The family's gonna sue, and the notary is gonna bear the brunt of that liability.

SPEAKER_01 13:54

It perfectly illustrates why you can never ever accept a signature as genuine based on the word of a third party, no matter how convincing their story is. Absolutely not. Let's look at scenario two. This one comes from Derek in Nevada, and it deals with pain medication and incapacitated signers.

SPEAKER_02 14:11

These are always tough.

SPEAKER_01 14:12

Very tough. Picture this a signer's in a hospital. They are bedridden, heavily medicated, perhaps even paralyzed and unable to speak clearly.

SPEAKER_02 14:21

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 14:21

The family is incredibly distressed. They are desperate to get a power of attorney signed so they can manage the patient's bank accounts and pay for life-saving medication. They beg Derek to just take their word for it and fix the papers so they can get the medicine.

SPEAKER_02 14:38

As a human being, your first instinct is to help a crying family. You want to fix it.

SPEAKER_01 14:43

Of course.

SPEAKER_02 14:43

But as a professional, you have to refuse the signing.

SPEAKER_01 14:46

Even for life-saving medicine.

SPEAKER_02 14:47

Yes. You have to understand why physical presence is mandated. It isn't just about matching a face to an ID card, it is about assessing mental capacity. Right. If a signer is heavily medicated or unresponsive, they simply lack the legal capacity to understand the document they are signing.

SPEAKER_01 15:04

They don't know what they're agreeing to.

SPEAKER_02 15:06

Exactly. If they cannot clearly communicate to you that they are signing of their own free will, you cannot proceed. Yeah. If you let your empathy override your training and you apply your seal, you aren't actually helping the family. You are validating a potentially fraudulent document that could be used to drain that patient's bank accounts. You have to draw a hard line.

SPEAKER_01 15:27

The liability is simply too massive to ignore.

SPEAKER_02 15:29

It is.

SPEAKER_01 15:30

Which leads us to scenario three: a situation involving a pre-signed conflict. This comes from Nina in Virginia.

SPEAKER_02 15:37

Okay, what happened with Nina?

SPEAKER_01 15:39

She admitted to the hotline that she notarized an unlawful eviction document on behalf of the father of her child.

SPEAKER_02 15:45

Oh no.

SPEAKER_01 15:46

Yeah. He wasn't present when she stamped it.

SPEAKER_02 15:48

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 15:49

She did it as a favor because they shared a child even though they were unmarried and living apart.

SPEAKER_02 15:52

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 15:53

She was calling to find out what the penalty could be.

SPEAKER_02 15:55

When you cross that line, you step directly into what we call the triad of legal liability.

SPEAKER_01 16:00

The triad of legal liability. That sounds terrifying.

SPEAKER_02 16:03

It is a three-part nightmare. The first stage is administrative ruin. State licensing authorities treat physical presence as an absolute mandate. When they find out you bypassed it, that is official misconduct. Your commission will be revoked and you will likely be blacklisted from the profession.

SPEAKER_01 16:20

But losing your stamp is really just the beginning of the nightmare, right?

SPEAKER_02 16:24

Exactly. Because stage two is civil liability. By falsely notarizing an eviction document, Nina is causing direct, measurable financial and emotional harm to the person being evicted. Right.

SPEAKER_01 16:37

They're losing their home illegally.

SPEAKER_02 16:39

So the victim is going to file a lawsuit for damages. Nina and potentially the company that holds her surety bond will be dragged into court to pay restitution. Wow. But stage three is where your life truly changes. Criminal liability.

SPEAKER_01 16:51

Criminal, like jail time.

SPEAKER_02 16:53

Yes. Let's look at the mechanics of New York penal law, section 175.40, just as an example.

SPEAKER_01 16:59

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 16:59

In New York, issuing a false certificate with the intent to deceive or injure is a class E felony.

SPEAKER_01 17:05

A felony.

SPEAKER_02 17:06

A felony. That carries a potential prison sentence of up to four years.

SPEAKER_01 17:09

Four years in prison for doing a favor.

SPEAKER_02 17:11

Right. Doing a quick favor for a partner without them in the room isn't just a mistake at work. It is a crime that can put you behind bars.

SPEAKER_01 17:19

Hearing the sheer weight of that liability, the obvious question for an entry-level professional listening right now is how do you protect yourself?

SPEAKER_02 17:28

You have to protect yourself.

SPEAKER_01 17:29

Right. When your boss is standing over your cubicle, holding a pre-signed document, tapping their watch, and pressuring you to just stamp it, how do you defend your livelihood?

SPEAKER_02 17:38

You rely on protocol. When the social pressure hits, you just fall back on your training.

SPEAKER_01 17:42

Makes sense.

SPEAKER_02 17:43

In the notary knowledge series, Derek Spruell outlines this strict, seven-step sequential execution. You must follow these steps in this exact order every single time without variation.

SPEAKER_01 17:55

Okay, let's go through them. Step one is require presence.

SPEAKER_02 17:58

Right. That makes sense based on everything we've discussed today. The signer must stand physically before you or appear via compliant R on technology.

SPEAKER_01 18:07

Step two is review the document. You are looking for blank spaces or an improper certificate.

SPEAKER_02 18:13

Yes.

SPEAKER_01 18:14

Step three is verify ID. Step four is assess capacity, having that brief conversation to ensure they are alert and willing.

SPEAKER_02 18:22

Right.

SPEAKER_01 18:23

But step five is where I actually want to push back a little.

SPEAKER_02 18:26

Oh, okay.

SPEAKER_01 18:27

Step five is log the journal. Why does the journal have to be logged before you apply your seal?

SPEAKER_02 18:33

Ah.

SPEAKER_01 18:34

If I do both actions within the same like five-minute window, does the sequence really matter?

SPEAKER_02 18:40

It matters entirely and it comes down to the mechanics of leverage.

SPEAKER_01 18:43

Leverage.

SPEAKER_02 18:44

Yes. Once your official seal is stamped onto that paper, it becomes a live legally binding document. Right. If you stamp it first, the signer now has exactly what they want. If they suddenly grab the document and walk out of your office before signing your journal, you have a massive problem. Oh, I see. You have a legally binding document out in the world with your seal on it, but you have zero evidence in your journal that the interaction actually took place or that you properly identified them.

SPEAKER_01 19:10

Because they didn't sign it.

SPEAKER_02 19:11

Exactly. By requiring them to sign your journal before you apply the seal, you retain control of the transaction.

SPEAKER_01 19:19

That is a brilliant mechanical safeguard. You literally withhold the final product until your own liability is covered.

SPEAKER_02 19:26

Exactly. And then after the journal is signed, you move to step six, perform the verbal ceremony.

SPEAKER_01 19:32

Actually administering the oath or acknowledgement out loud.

SPEAKER_02 19:35

Right. And finally, step seven, complete the block, fill in your seal, the venue, the date, and your title.

SPEAKER_01 19:42

If you build the habit of walking through those seven steps, you create an impenetrable shield around your career.

SPEAKER_02 19:49

You really do. You remove the emotion and the social friction completely from the equation. When the boss asks for a favor, you don't have to make it personal, you just point to the protocol.

SPEAKER_01 19:59

It is incredibly practical advice for anyone dealing with office dynamics. Well, as we wrap up our exploration of the sources today, there is a final thought I want you to mull over.

SPEAKER_02 20:09

Let's hear it.

SPEAKER_01 20:10

We spend some time discussing remote online notarization and how it utilizes advanced technology to establish a virtual form of physical presence. But as Ron becomes the standard, we have to ask ourselves a difficult question. Does looking at a signer through a computer screen inherently diminish a professional's ability to detect subtle off-camera coercion?

SPEAKER_02 20:33

Oh, that's a great point.

SPEAKER_01 20:35

Right. If an abusive spouse or an overbearing relative is standing just like three feet to the left, out of the webcam's frame, threatening the signer, will you be able to pick up on those subtle cues of fear or hesitation as easily as you would if you were sitting across from them in a living room?

SPEAKER_02 20:53

It is a profound question. I mean, technology is always going to evolve, and the demand for convenience will continuously push the boundaries of how this work is done.

SPEAKER_01 21:01

Always.

SPEAKER_02 21:01

But no software can assess the nervous tremor in someone's voice or the fearful glance they cast off screen. The human intuition of a trained professional remains the ultimate, irreplaceable shield against fraud.

SPEAKER_01 21:13

You are the final line of defense. And we want to keep helping you build those defenses. Email your questions to Derek at Derekschool.com.

SPEAKER_02 21:20

Yes, and we will try to answer as soon as possible at the end of our shows.

SPEAKER_01 21:23

A big thank you to our incredible team. Executive producer Derek Sproul, lead writer Marilyn Lee Trotter, Graphics Eddie Montez Travis, Music Thomas Bynum, and produced by Magnificent Works Business Solutions.

SPEAKER_02 21:37

Thank you all for joining us.

SPEAKER_01 21:39

Don't just be listeners of the knowledge.

SPEAKER_02 21:40

Be doers of the knowledge.

SPEAKER_01 21:42

It's notary knowledge.

SPEAKER_02 21:43

Until next time.

SPEAKER_00 21:47

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