I’m an experienced notary but have recently obtained my commission in IL. My last two sets of closing docs have had the term (seal) directly under the borrower signature line or directly after the borrowers name on the signature line. I’ve read that a notary cannot place there notary seal on a document if that seal will cover any writting or ‘signature’ on the document.
The title company provided no instructons as what to do in this situation; i.e.; add a separate acknowledgment page for my seal. My seal would have covered the signer’s signature so I did not affix my seal. Has anyone had this experience and how did you handle it?
I don’t know what the law is in Illinois. In my state, Vermont, a contract or other document sealed with the personal seal of the signer is a little different than a contract without a seal. The statute of limitations may be longer. Normally, a contract requires consideration from both parties, that is, each must be giving something of value, be it money, labor, property, etc. But, in the past, if a contract was under seal, the signer could give something while not getting anything in return. I’m not sure if, today, it’s still possible to have a contract with no consideration because of the personal seal.
Vermont, like some other states, recognize that people don’t go around any more with sealing wax, candles, and a brass seal. To make it easier, the word “seal” near the signature is the personal seal, just as if the signer had poured molten wax on the deed an pressed his/her brass seal into it.
The personal seal of the signer is completely different from the seal of the notary, and the seal of a notary is covered by a different part of the law from personal seals. In fact, in Vermont the notary seal has been renamed “official stamp”.
