2004 Rules on Notarial Practice, As Amended

(A.M. No. 02-8-13-SC)

DEFINITION OF TERMS:

Acknowledgment refers to an act in which an individual on a single occasion:

(a)  appears in person before the notary public and presents an integrally complete
instrument or document;
(b) is attested to be personally known to the notary public or identified by the notary public
through competent evidence of identity as defined by these Rules; and
(c)  represents to the notary public that the signature on the instrument or document was
voluntarily affixed by him for the purposes stated in the instrument or document, declares
that he has executed the instrument or document as his free and voluntary act and deed,
and, if he acts in a particular representative capacity, that he has the authority to sign in that
capacity.

Affirmation or Oath refers to an act in which an individual on a single occasion:

(a)  appears in person before the notary public; 
(b)  is personally known to the notary public or identified by the notary public through
competent evidence of identity as defined by these Rules; and 
(c)  avows under penalty of law to the whole truth of the contents of the instrument or
document.

Commission refers to the grant of authority to perform notarial acts and to the written
evidence of the authority.

Jurat refers to an act in which an individual on a single occasion:

(a)  appears in person before the notary public and presents an instrument or document;
(b)  is personally known to the notary public or identified by the notary public through
competent evidence of identity as defined by these Rules; 
(c)  signs the instrument or document in the presence of the notary; and
(d) takes an oath or affirmation before the notary public as to such instrument or document.

Notary Public and/or Notary refer to any person commissioned to perform official acts under
these Rules.

Principal refers to a person appearing before the notary public whose act is the subject of
notarization

Competent Evidence of Identity refers to the identification of an individual based on:

(a) at least one current identification document issued by an official agency bearing the
photograph and signature of the individual, such as but not limited to, passport,
driver’s license, Professional Regulations Commission ID, National Bureau of
 Investigation clearance, police clearance, postal ID, voter’s ID, Barangay certification,
Government Service and Insurance System (GSIS) e-card, Social Security System (SSS)
card, Philhealth card, senior citizen card, Overseas Workers Welfare Administration
(OWWA) ID, OFW ID, seaman’s book, alien certificate of registration/immigrant
certificate of registration, government office ID, certification from the National Council
for the Welfare of Disable Persons (NCWDP), Department of Social Welfare and
Development (DSWD) certification (as amended in February 2008)
(b) the oath or affirmation of one credible witness not privy to the instrument, document
or transaction who is personally known to the notary public and who personally
knows the individual, or of two credible witnesses neither of whom is privy to the
instrument, document or transaction who each personally knows the individual and
shows to the notary public documentary identification.

QUALIFICATIONS OF A NOTARY PUBLIC:

(1)  must be a citizen of the Philippines; 

(2)  must be over twenty-one (21) years of age; 
(3)  must be a resident in the Philippines for at least one (1) year and maintains a regular
place of work or business in the city or province where the commission is to be issued; 
(4) must be a member of the Philippine Bar in good standing with clearances from the Office
of the Bar Confidant of the Supreme Court and the Integrated Bar of the Philippines; and
(5)  must not have been convicted in the first instance of any crime involving moral turpitude.

JURISDICTION AND TERM OF OFFICE:

A person commissioned as notary public may perform notarial acts in any place within the
territorial jurisdiction of the commissioning court for a period of two (2) years commencing
the first day of January of the year in which the commissioning is made, unless earlier
revoked or the notary public has resigned under these Rules and the Rules of Court

POWERS:

(a) A notary public is empowered to perform the following notarial acts:

(a) acknowledgments;
(b) oaths and affirmations;
(c) jurats; 
(d) signature witnessings;
(e) copy certifications; and
(f) any other act authorized by these Rules.
(b) A notary public is authorized to certify the affixing of a signature by thumb or other mark on
an instrument or document presented for notarization if:
(1)  the thumb or other mark is affixed in the presence of the notary public and of two (2)
disinterested and unaffected witnesses to the instrument or document;
(2)  both witnesses sign their own names in addition to the thumb or other mark;
(3)  the notary public writes below the thumb or other mark: "Thumb or Other Mark affixed by
(name of signatory by mark) in the presence of (names and addresses of witnesses) and
undersigned notary public"; and 
(4)  the notary public notarizes the signature by thumb or other mark through an
acknowledgment, jurat, or signature witnessing.
(c) A notary public is authorized to sign on behalf of a person who is physically unable to sign or
make a mark on an instrument or document if:
(1)  the notary public is directed by the person unable to sign or make a mark to sign on his
behalf;
(2)  the signature of the notary public is affixed in the presence of two disinterested and
unaffected witnesses to the instrument or document;
(3)  both witnesses sign their own names ;
(4)  the notary public writes below his signature: “Signature affixed by notary in presence of
(names and addresses of person and two [2] witnesses)”; and
(5) the notary public notarizes his signature by acknowledgment or jurat.

PROHIBITIONS:

(a) A notary public shall not perform a notarial act outside his regular place of work or
business; provided, however, that on certain exceptional occasions or situations, a notarial
act may be performed at the request of the parties in the following sites located within his
territorial jurisdiction: 
(1)  public offices, convention halls, and similar places where oaths of office may be
administered;
(2)  public function areas in hotels and similar places for the signing of instruments or
documents requiring notarization;
(3)  hospitals and other medical institutions where a party to an instrument or
document is confined for treatment; and
(4)  any place where a party to an instrument or document requiring notarization is
under detention.

(b) A person shall not perform a notarial act if the person involved as signatory to the
instrument or document -
(1)  is not in the notary's presence personally at the time of the notarization; and
(2)  is not personally known to the notary public or otherwise identified by the notary
public through competent evidence of identity as defined by these Rules.

DISQUALIFICATIONS:

A notary public is disqualified from performing a notarial act if he:

(a)  is a party to the instrument or document that is to be notarized; 
(b)  will receive, as a direct or indirect result, any commission, fee, advantage, right, title,
interest, cash, property, or other consideration, except as provided by these Rules and by law;
or
(c)  is a spouse, common-law partner, ancestor, descendant, or relative by affinity or
consanguinity of the principal within the fourth civil degree.

GROUNDS FOR REVOCATION OF NOTARIAL COMMISSION:

(a) The Executive Judge shall revoke a notarial commission for any ground on which an
application for a commission may be denied.

(b) In addition, the Executive Judge may revoke the commission of, or impose appropriate
administrative sanctions upon, any notary public who:

(1) fails to keep a notarial register;

(2) fails to make the proper entry or entries in his notarial register concerning his notarial
acts;
(3) fails to send the copy of the entries to the Executive Judge within the first ten (10) days of
the month following;
(4) fails to affix to acknowledgments the date of expiration of his commission;
(5) fails to submit his notarial register, when filled, to the Executive Judge;
(6) fails to make his report, within a reasonable time, to the Executive Judge concerning the
performance of his duties, as may be required by the judge;
(7) fails to require the presence of a principal at the time of the notarial act;
(8) fails to identify a principal on the basis of personal knowledge or competent evidence;
(9) executes a false or incomplete certificate under Section 5, Rule IV;
(10)  knowingly performs or fails to perform any other act prohibited or mandated by these
Rules; and
(11)  commits any other dereliction or act which in the judgment of the Executive Judge
constitutes good cause for revocation of commission or imposition of administrative
sanction.

Jandoquile vs. Atty. Quirino Revilla, Jr.

A.C. No. 9514, April 10, 2013

FACTS: Atty. Revilla, Jr. notarized a complaint-affidavit signed by Heneraline Brosas, Herizalyn

Brosas Pedrosa and Elmer Alvarado. Heneraline Brosas is a sister of Atty. Revilla, Jr.'s wife.
Jandoquile complains that Atty. Revilla, Jr. is disqualified to perform the notarial act per Section
3( c), Rule IV of the 2004 Rules on Notarial Practice (Disqualification by relationship).
Jandoquile also complains that Atty. Revilla, Jr. did not require the three affiants in the
complaint-affidavit to show their valid identification cards.

Atty. Revilla, Jr. did not deny but admitted Jandoquile's material allegations. The issue,
according to Atty. Revilla, Jr., is whether the single act of notarizing the complaint-affidavit of
relatives within the fourth civil degree of affinity and, at the same time, not requiring them to
present valid identification cards is a ground for disbarment. Atty. Revilla, Jr. submits that his
act is not a ground for disbarment. He also says that he acts as counsel of the three affiants;
thus, he should be considered more as counsel than as a notary public when he notarized their
complaint-affidavit. He did not require the affiants to present valid identification cards since he
knows them personally.

ISSUES:
1. WON Atty. Revilla violated Section 3(c), Rule IV of the 2004 Rules on Notarial Practice?
2. WON Atty Revilla violated Section 2(b), Rule IV of the 2004 Rules on Notarial Practice

HELD: Yes, Section 3(c), Rule IV of the 2004 Rules on Notarial Practice clearly disqualifies Atty.
Revilla from notarizing the complaint-affidavit, from performing the notarial act, since two of
the affiants or principals are his relatives within the fourth civil degree of affinity. Given the
clear provision of the disqualification rule, it behooved upon Atty. Revilla, Jr. to act with
prudence and refuse notarizing the document. The court added that they cannot agree with the
respondent’s proposition to consider him to have acted more as counsel of the affiants, not as
notary public, when he notarized the complaint-affidavit. The notarial certificate at the bottom
of the complaint-affidavit shows his signature as a notary public, with a notarial commission
valid until December 31, 2012.

As to the second issue, the court held that no violation was committed in case where the notary
public knows the affiants personally, he need not require them to show their valid identification
cards.

In this case, Heneraline Brosas is a sister of Atty. Revilla, Jr.'s wife; Herizalyn Brosas Pedrosa is
his wife's sister-in-law; and Elmer Alvarado is the live-in houseboy of the Brosas family. Atty.
Revilla, Jr. knows the three affiants personally. Thus, he was justified in no longer requiring
them to show valid identification cards.