When Legal Systems Clash: Why Foreign-Born Residents Fall Prey to Unscrupulous Notaries Public and What Can Be Done to Prevent It

This podcast is a brief presentation from a scholarly article I am presenting this month at the North East Academy of Legal Studies in Business annual academic conference dealing with the problem of notarial fraud. 

Unlike notaries public in the overwhelming majority of nations around the world that follow the prevalent civil law legal system, U.S. notaries public are not required to be highly trained lawyers and, unless they are also attorneys, are neither qualified nor authorized to give legal advice, represent clients in court or before state or federal agencies, or provide immigration-related advice, filings, or representation. Foreign-born permanent and temporary residents--legal and illegal--are usually not aware of the very limited role that non-lawyer notaries public are authorized to play in all U.S. states and most territories and are, therefore, easy prey for unscrupulous notaries to whom they turn for advice and representation in the mistaken belief that U.S. notaries public are the same as notaries in their countries of origin, be they in Africa, Asia, Europe or the Americas. 

Notarial fraud is almost always framed as an issue that affects only Mexican nationals and nationals of other Central and South American countries seeking immigration-related legal advice and assistance with issues relating to change of immigration status or sanctuary applications. And, though it certainly affects these individuals, it also affects many others who mistakenly place their trust in unscrupulous notaries public to handle a wide range of legal issues such as divorce, wills and trusts, contract negotiation, and a wide range of other civil and criminal matters. My paper and this presentation touches on what measures need to be put in place to prevent the widespread unauthorized practice of law by non-lawyer notaries and educate the public as to the nature and extent of the problem.