Recently, the Nigerian Notaries Public Act, 2023 was gazetted by the Nigerian Government with the Act taking over from the old law. The hallmark of the 2023 Act is the provision of digital and remote notarization of documents.
Who is a Notary Public?
A Notary Public in Nigeria for knowledge purposes is a legal practitioner and senior member of the Nigerian Bar Association who is appointed by the Chief Justice of Nigeria to perform notarial functions. The Chief Justice of Nigeria is empowered by the Notaries Public Act to appoint any fit and proper person being a legal practitioner to be a notary public for Nigeria.
In line with modern economic reality, it became a necessity for the Notary Public Laws of Nigeria to be revisited with the aim to cater for technological and digitalization coverage.
Highlights of The Notaries Public Act 2023.
A notary appointed by the Chief Justice of Nigeria shall perform the same duties and exercise the same functions as a notary in England.
Persons to be Appointed as Notaries Public
According to the Act, only a legal practitioner qualified to practice in Nigeria ( and magistrates , customs collectors to be known as Ex Officio notaries) can be appointed as or carry out the functions/duties of a Notary Public in Nigeria which extinguishes the special exemption for notaries appointed by the Master of Faculties in England previously.
The Act empowers the Chief Registrar of the Supreme Court to maintain an electronic register of Notaries Public alongside the physical register in existence. The Register under the 2023 Act is to be made available to the general public.
Duties and Functions of Notaries Public
The duties and functions of the Notary Public are well spelt out to include witnessing of sales and purchase agreements, transfer of land agreements, assignment of intellectual property, power of attorney, deeds, security documentation, mortgages, company resolutions, minutes of meetings, reports and so on.
The Introduction of Digitization to the Notary Public functions in Nigeria
The current technological trend in the globe has obviously disrupted the culture of notarization. The act in its innovative provision permits Notaries Public to conduct digital and remote online notarizations using electronic means, including audio-visual communication. The Act provides further that Notaries must register their capabilities for digital notarization with the Chief Registrar of the Supreme Court of Nigeria. The requirements for electronic notarization.
The Act establishes the requirements for the electronic notarization process, technology and the recording of audio-visual sessions.
According to Section 8 of the Act, all electronically notarized documents shall be recognized as valid in all courts within Nigeria. In determining the validity of the notarized documents, the signature and seal of the notary public shall be recognized as evidence in court
Notaries Public ex Officio
The Act designates certain officials as ex officio notaries public. These include magistrates and customs collectors. The aim of this provision is to further widen the array of authorized notaries to take care of situations where such services may be needed and no Notary Public is available. Section 21 (2) of the Act
Ethical Issues and Sanctions for Notaries Public
As an officer of the Supreme Court, all Notaries are expected to be ethical in discharging their duties. The Act prescribes penalties for the unethical conducts and it grants the Supreme Court the authority to investigate complaints and suspend notaries found in violation of the law.
Remarks and Conclusion
The enactment of the Notaries Public Act, 2023 is a welcome development as far as the notary practice in Nigeria is concerned. In this thriving era of digitalization, the services of the Notary cannot be exempted. More importantly, this shall further strengthen the fight against unethical notary practices. Also commendable is the fact that the Chief Justice of Nigeria going forward has been granted the authority to promulgate regulations for the effective implementation of the act ensuring a seamless operation.
However, it was observed that the Act did not specify the timeline for processing of notary public applications. This is in line with complaints from applicants that the processing of notary applications takes as long as two to three years before such applications are granted.
We hope that the timeline for submission of application, processing and appointment of Notary Public shall be addressed by the regulations to be issued by the Chief Justice of the Federation such that the processing are concluded within a maximum period of one year.
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