NOTARIAL WORK
A Notary Public is a specialist attorney who is legally empowered to officially validate signatures, administer oaths, certify the validity of documents, and perform a wide range of administrative functions of national and international nature, including the drafting and/or legalisation of certain documents.
The legality of these documents can then be assumed, drawn from the fact that the document was notarially executed.
Example of documents drafted & certified by a notary public
Examples of documents drafted by a Notary Public
Examples of documents certified by a Notary Public
Apostille and authentication of documents for international use
Apart from notarial deeds, a Notary Public is also needed for the legalisation of documents which include attestation, apostille, authentication, and notarisation of documents for use in foreign countries.
The
purpose of an Apostille Certificate is to simplify the legalisation of
documents for use internationally. The legalisation procedure depends on
whether the country is a party to the Hague Convention for international
treaties and declarations. If the country is a party, the only legalisation
required is an Apostille Certificate.
When a country is not party to the Hague Convention, a more complicated procedure is necessary. This procedure requires authorisation from four authorities in South Africa as listed below and takes the following steps:
1. Notarisation of documents by a Notary Public.
2. Authentication of the Notary Public’s signature by the Registrar of the High Court.
3. Authentication of the Registrar’s signature by an official from the Foreign Affairs Department.
4. The document is then transmitted to the foreign embassy in South Africa of the country in which it is intended for use.
5. The foreign embassy then sends the document to the relevant authority in the country that requires the document.