What Goes on a Notary Stamp in Michigan?

Notary publics have a history that traces back to Roman times. They are "witnesses of the state" and are commissioned by states to bear witness to the authenticity of documents, administer oaths and perform any other function that each individual state decides can be performed autonomously by the officer. In the state of Michigan, the Office of the Great Seal of the State is charged with accepting certain documents and certifying their authenticity. In doing so, it also oversees the commissioning of a notary public and the issuing of other certifications of authenticity for documents.

Notary publics have several duties in the state of Michigan. They may take acknowledgments, administer oaths and affirmations and witness or attest to signatures.

Notary publics in Michigan are not allowed to do the following: certify or notarize originals; certify or notarize a true copy of another record; notarize his or her own signature; notarize an order that he has executed; and claim any powers not authorized by the Office of the Great Seal including counseling on immigration matters.

The Notary Seal of the state of Michigan contains the following information: the words notary public, the registered name of the notary, the words "State of Michigan," the expiration date of the notary's commission, a space for the date of the notarization and a space for the signature of the notary (to be signed at the time of the act). While there are many styles and forms that a notary seal may be made in--raised seals, embossed, rubber stamped, square or circle--there are some things that are prohibited from being included on the Notary Seal in the state of Michigan. The Michigan Notary Act (55.291) specifically prohibits a notary public from stating or implying in any way that he can perform any duties as an attorney. A notary public is also strictly prohibited from translating using any other language other than English in any of the printing material (including advertisements) when using terms, such as notary public, notary, licensed, attorney or lawyer.

A notary public is commissioned by the state of Michigan to provide authentication of documents and occurrences. The notary is charged by the state to verify to the best of his ability and in keeping with the state guidelines the authenticity of the actions he is authenticating. By doing so, the notary acts as a representative of the state and helps to keep the state functioning smoothly by being an available agent to the population and lessening the need for each person to travel to the state offices and overwhelming the state's system.