| ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| 1 | AN ACT concerning government.
| |||||||||||||||||||
| 2 | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
| |||||||||||||||||||
| 3 | represented in the General Assembly:
| |||||||||||||||||||
| 4 | Section 5. The Illinois Notary Public Act is amended by | |||||||||||||||||||
| 5 | changing Sections 1-104, 2-101, 2-102, 2-102.5, 2-103, 2-104, | |||||||||||||||||||
| 6 | 2-105, 2-106, 2-107, 3-101, 3-103, 3-104, 3-105, 3-106, 4-101, | |||||||||||||||||||
| 7 | 5-101, 5-102, 6-102, and 6-104 and Sections 7-106, 7-107, and | |||||||||||||||||||
| 8 | 7-108 and by adding Sections 1-106, 2-101.5, 2-102.6, 2-102.7, | |||||||||||||||||||
| 9 | 3-101.5, and 3-107 and the heading of Article VI-A and Sections | |||||||||||||||||||
| 10 | 6A-101, 6A-102, 6A-103, 6A-104, 6A-105, 6A-106, and 7-110 as | |||||||||||||||||||
| 11 | follows:
| |||||||||||||||||||
| 12 | (5 ILCS 312/1-104) (from Ch. 102, par. 201-104)
| |||||||||||||||||||
| 13 | Sec. 1-104. Definitions. As used in this Act: Notary Public | |||||||||||||||||||
| 14 | and Notarization Defined. | |||||||||||||||||||
| 15 | "Accredited immigration representative" means a not for | |||||||||||||||||||
| 16 | profit organization recognized by the Board of Immigration | |||||||||||||||||||
| 17 | Appeals under 8 C.F.R. 292.2(a) and employees of those | |||||||||||||||||||
| 18 | organizations accredited under 8 C.F.R. 292.29(d). | |||||||||||||||||||
| 19 | "Acknowledgment" means a declaration by an individual | |||||||||||||||||||
| 20 | before a notarial officer that the individual has signed a | |||||||||||||||||||
| 21 | record for the purpose stated in the record and, if the record | |||||||||||||||||||
| 22 | is signed in a representative capacity, that the individual | |||||||||||||||||||
| 23 | signed the record with proper authority and signed it as the | |||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | act of the individual or entity identified in the record. | ||||||
| 2 | "Audio-video communication" means communication by which a | ||||||
| 3 | person is able to see, hear, and communicate with another | ||||||
| 4 | person in real time using electronic means. | ||||||
| 5 | "Communication technology" means an electronic device or | ||||||
| 6 | process that allows a notary public and a remotely located | ||||||
| 7 | individual to communicate with each other simultaneously by | ||||||
| 8 | audio-video communication. | ||||||
| 9 | "Credential" means a tangible record evidencing the | ||||||
| 10 | identity of a person, including a valid and unexpired | ||||||
| 11 | identification card or other document issued by the federal | ||||||
| 12 | government or any state government that contains the photograph | ||||||
| 13 | and signature of the principal. | ||||||
| 14 | "Credential analysis" means a process or service that | ||||||
| 15 | complies with any rules or regulations adopted by the Secretary | ||||||
| 16 | of State through which a third party affirms the validity of a | ||||||
| 17 | government-issued identification credential or any data | ||||||
| 18 | thereon through the review of data sources. | ||||||
| 19 | "Digital certificate" means a computer-based record or | ||||||
| 20 | electronic file to a notary public or applicant for commission | ||||||
| 21 | as an electronic notary public for the purpose of creating an | ||||||
| 22 | official electronic signature. The digital certificate shall | ||||||
| 23 | be kept in the exclusive control of the electronic notary | ||||||
| 24 | public. | ||||||
| 25 | "Dynamic knowledge based authentication assessment" means | ||||||
| 26 | an identity assessment that is based on a set of questions | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | formulated from public or private data sources for which the | ||||||
| 2 | person taking the assessment has not previously provided an | ||||||
| 3 | answer and that meets any rules adopted by the Secretary of | ||||||
| 4 | State. | ||||||
| 5 | "Electronic" means of or relating to technology having | ||||||
| 6 | electrical, digital, magnetic, wireless, optical, | ||||||
| 7 | electromagnetic, or similar capabilities. | ||||||
| 8 | "Electronic document" means information that is created, | ||||||
| 9 | generated, sent, communicated, received, or stored by | ||||||
| 10 | electronic means. | ||||||
| 11 | "Electronic notarial act" means an act that an electronic | ||||||
| 12 | notary public of this State is authorized to perform. The term | ||||||
| 13 | includes: | ||||||
| 14 | (1) taking an acknowledgment; | ||||||
| 15 | (2) administering an oath or affirmation; | ||||||
| 16 | (3) executing a jurat; | ||||||
| 17 | (4) certifying a true and correct copy; and | ||||||
| 18 | (5) performing such other duties as may be prescribed | ||||||
| 19 | by a specific statute. | ||||||
| 20 | "Electronic notarial certificate" means the portion of a | ||||||
| 21 | notarized electronic document that is completed by an online | ||||||
| 22 | notary public and contains the following: | ||||||
| 23 | (1) the electronic notary public's electronic | ||||||
| 24 | signature, electronic seal, title, and commission | ||||||
| 25 | expiration date; | ||||||
| 26 | (2) other required information concerning the date and | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | placement of the electronic notarization; and | ||||||
| 2 | (3) the facts attested to or certified by the | ||||||
| 3 | electronic notary public in the particular notarization. | ||||||
| 4 | "Electronic notarial certificate" also may also include a | ||||||
| 5 | remote online notarial certificate as defined under this Act. | ||||||
| 6 | "Electronic notary public" means a person commissioned by | ||||||
| 7 | the Secretary of State to perform electronic notarial acts. | ||||||
| 8 | "Electronic record" means a record created, generated, | ||||||
| 9 | sent, communicated, received or stored by electronic means. | ||||||
| 10 | "Electronic seal" means information within a notarized | ||||||
| 11 | electronic document that includes the names, commission | ||||||
| 12 | number, jurisdiction, and expiration date of the commission of | ||||||
| 13 | an electronic notary public and generally includes the | ||||||
| 14 | information required to be set forth in a mechanical stamp | ||||||
| 15 | under subsection (b-5) of Section 3-101. | ||||||
| 16 | "Electronic signature" means the official signature of the | ||||||
| 17 | commissioned notary that is on file with the Secretary of State | ||||||
| 18 | and has been reduced to an electronic format that may be | ||||||
| 19 | attached to or logically associated with a record and executed | ||||||
| 20 | or adopted by an individual with the intent to sign the record. | ||||||
| 21 | "Identity proofing" means a process or service operating | ||||||
| 22 | according to criteria approved by the Secretary of State | ||||||
| 23 | through which a third person affirms the identity of an | ||||||
| 24 | individual through review of personal information from public | ||||||
| 25 | and proprietary data sources, including (a) by means of dynamic | ||||||
| 26 | knowledge-based authentication, such as a review of personal | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | information from public or proprietary data sources; or (b) by | ||||||
| 2 | means of analysis of biometric data, such as, but not limited | ||||||
| 3 | to, facial recognition, voiceprint analysis, or fingerprint | ||||||
| 4 | analysis. | ||||||
| 5 | "In the presence of" or "appear before" means: | ||||||
| 6 | (1) being in the same physical location as another | ||||||
| 7 | person and close enough to see, hear, communication with | ||||||
| 8 | and exchange credentials with that person; or | ||||||
| 9 | (2) being in a different physical location from another | ||||||
| 10 | person, but able to see, hear, and communicate with the | ||||||
| 11 | person by means of audio-video communication that meets any | ||||||
| 12 | rules adopted by the Secretary of State. | ||||||
| 13 | "Notarial act" means an act, whether performed with respect | ||||||
| 14 | to a tangible or electronic record, that a notary public or an | ||||||
| 15 | electronic notary public may perform under the law of this | ||||||
| 16 | State. "Notary act" includes taking an acknowledgment, | ||||||
| 17 | administering an oath or affirmation, taking a verification on | ||||||
| 18 | oath, or affirmation, witnessing or attesting a signature, | ||||||
| 19 | certifying or attesting a copy, and noting a protest of a | ||||||
| 20 | negotiable instrument. | ||||||
| 21 | "Notary public" or "notary" means an individual appointed | ||||||
| 22 | and commissioned to perform notarial acts. | ||||||
| 23 | "Notarization" means the performance of a notarial act. | ||||||
| 24 | "Outside the United States" means a location outside of the | ||||||
| 25 | geographic boundaries of a state or commonwealth of the United | ||||||
| 26 | States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the United | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | States Virgin Islands, and any territory, or insular | ||||||
| 2 | possession, or other location subject to the jurisdiction of | ||||||
| 3 | the United States. | ||||||
| 4 | "Principal" means an individual: | ||||||
| 5 | (1) whose signature is notarized; or | ||||||
| 6 | (2) taking an oath or affirmation from the notary but | ||||||
| 7 | not in the capacity of a witness for the notarization. | ||||||
| 8 | "Public key certificate" means an electronic credential | ||||||
| 9 | which is used to identify an individual who signed an | ||||||
| 10 | electronic record with the certificate. | ||||||
| 11 | "Real time" means the actual span of uninterrupted time | ||||||
| 12 | during which all parts of an electronic notarial act occur. | ||||||
| 13 | "Remote electronic notarization system" means a set of | ||||||
| 14 | applications, programs, hardware, software, or technology to | ||||||
| 15 | enable an electronic notary to perform electronic notarial acts | ||||||
| 16 | through audio-video communication. | ||||||
| 17 | "Remote online notarial certificate" means the form of an | ||||||
| 18 | acknowledgment, jurat, verification on oath or affirmation, or | ||||||
| 19 | verification of witness or attestation that is completed | ||||||
| 20 | remotely by an electronic notary public and: | ||||||
| 21 | (1) contains the electronic notary's electronic | ||||||
| 22 | signature, electronic seal, title and commission, and | ||||||
| 23 | expiration date; | ||||||
| 24 | (2) contains other required information concerning the | ||||||
| 25 | date and place of the remote online notarization; | ||||||
| 26 | (3) otherwise conforms to the requirements for an | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | acknowledgment, jurat, verification on oath or | ||||||
| 2 | affirmation, or verification of witness or attestation | ||||||
| 3 | under the laws of this State; and | ||||||
| 4 | (4) indicates that the person making the | ||||||
| 5 | acknowledgment, oath, or affirmation appeared remotely | ||||||
| 6 | online. | ||||||
| 7 | "Remote presentation" means the transmission of a quality | ||||||
| 8 | image of a government-issued identification credential to an | ||||||
| 9 | electronic notary public through communication technology for | ||||||
| 10 | the purpose of enabling the electronic notary public to | ||||||
| 11 | identify the person appearing before the electronic notary | ||||||
| 12 | public and to perform a credential analysis. | ||||||
| 13 | "Tamper evident" means that any change to an electronic | ||||||
| 14 | document shall display evidence of the change. | ||||||
| 15 | "Unique to the electronic notary public" and "sole control" | ||||||
| 16 | mean, with respect to an electronic notarization, that the | ||||||
| 17 | signing device used to affix the electronic signature of the | ||||||
| 18 | electronic notary public and to render the official electronic | ||||||
| 19 | seal information tamper evident must be accessible by and | ||||||
| 20 | attributable solely to the electronic notary public to the | ||||||
| 21 | exclusion of all other persons and entities for the necessary | ||||||
| 22 | period of time that such device is engaged and operating to | ||||||
| 23 | effectuate the authorized electronic notarization. | ||||||
| 24 | (a) The terms "notary public" and "notary" are used | ||||||
| 25 | interchangeably to
mean any individual appointed and | ||||||
| 26 | commissioned to perform notarial acts.
| ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | (b) "Notarization" means the performance of a notarial act.
| ||||||
| 2 | (c) "Accredited immigration representative" means a | ||||||
| 3 | not-for-profit organization recognized by the Board of | ||||||
| 4 | Immigration Appeals under 8 C.F.R. 292.2(a) and employees of | ||||||
| 5 | those organizations accredited under 8 C.F.R. 292.2(d).
| ||||||
| 6 | (Source: P.A. 93-1001, eff. 8-23-04.)
| ||||||
| 7 | (5 ILCS 312/1-106 new) | ||||||
| 8 | Sec. 1-106. Electronic Notarization Fund. The Electronic | ||||||
| 9 | Notarization Fund is created as a special fund in the State | ||||||
| 10 | treasury. Moneys in the Electronic Notarization Fund during the | ||||||
| 11 | preceding calendar year, shall be distributed, subject to | ||||||
| 12 | appropriation, to the Secretary of State to fund the Department | ||||||
| 13 | of Index's implementation of the electronic notarization | ||||||
| 14 | commissions.
| ||||||
| 15 | (5 ILCS 312/2-101) (from Ch. 102, par. 202-101)
| ||||||
| 16 | Sec. 2-101. Appointment. | ||||||
| 17 | (a) The Secretary of State may appoint and commission as | ||||||
| 18 | notaries public for
a 4-year term as many persons resident in a | ||||||
| 19 | county in this
State as he deems
necessary.
The Secretary of | ||||||
| 20 | State may appoint and commission as notaries public for a
| ||||||
| 21 | one-year term as many persons who are residents of a state | ||||||
| 22 | bordering Illinois
whose place of work or business is within a | ||||||
| 23 | county in this State as the
Secretary deems necessary, but only | ||||||
| 24 | if the laws of that state authorize
residents of Illinois to be
| ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | appointed and commissioned as notaries public in that state.
| ||||||
| 2 | (b) A notary public commissioned in this State may apply | ||||||
| 3 | for an electronic notary public commission to perform | ||||||
| 4 | electronic notarial acts with the name that appears on the | ||||||
| 5 | notary's commission. | ||||||
| 6 | (c) An individual may apply for a notary public commission | ||||||
| 7 | and apply for an electronic notary public commission at the | ||||||
| 8 | same time. | ||||||
| 9 | (d) Any notary or electronic notary appointed by the | ||||||
| 10 | Secretary of State may elect not to perform a notarial act or | ||||||
| 11 | an electronic notarial act for any reason. | ||||||
| 12 | (e) The commission of a notary public and an electronic | ||||||
| 13 | notary public shall have the same term pursuant to subsection | ||||||
| 14 | (a). | ||||||
| 15 | (f) The electronic notary public commission of a notary | ||||||
| 16 | public is suspended by operation of law when the notary public | ||||||
| 17 | is no longer appointed and commissioned as a notary public in | ||||||
| 18 | this State under this Act. If the commission of the notary | ||||||
| 19 | public has been revoked or suspended, the Secretary of State | ||||||
| 20 | shall immediately notify the notary public in writing that his | ||||||
| 21 | or her commission as a notary public and as an electronic | ||||||
| 22 | notary public will be suspended by operation of law until he or | ||||||
| 23 | she is reappointed. | ||||||
| 24 | (Source: P.A. 91-818, eff. 6-13-00.)
| ||||||
| 25 | (5 ILCS 312/2-101.5 new) | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | Sec. 2-101.5. Course of study and examination. | ||||||
| 2 | (a) Applicants applying for the first time as a notary | ||||||
| 3 | public or as an electronic notary public or applying to renew | ||||||
| 4 | his or her appointment as a notary public or as an electronic | ||||||
| 5 | notary public shall: | ||||||
| 6 | (1) complete any course of study on notarization and | ||||||
| 7 | electronic notarization that is required by the Secretary | ||||||
| 8 | of State; and | ||||||
| 9 | (2) pass an examination at the completion of the | ||||||
| 10 | course. | ||||||
| 11 | (b) Any applicant applying only for a notary public | ||||||
| 12 | commission and not an electronic notary public commission shall | ||||||
| 13 | be required to only take the course of study for notary public | ||||||
| 14 | commissions. Any applicant applying for an electronic notary | ||||||
| 15 | public commission or a commission as both a notary public and | ||||||
| 16 | an electronic notary public must take the course of study for | ||||||
| 17 | both notaries public and electronic notaries public. | ||||||
| 18 | (c) A course of study required to be completed under this | ||||||
| 19 | Section must: | ||||||
| 20 | (1) be taken online and be of a duration of not more | ||||||
| 21 | than 3 hours, including instruction and completion of an | ||||||
| 22 | examination of the course content; | ||||||
| 23 | (2) provide instruction in, without limitation, | ||||||
| 24 | notarial law, ethics, and procedure, as well as technology | ||||||
| 25 | if applying for an electronic notary public commission; | ||||||
| 26 | (3) comply with any rules adopted by the Secretary of | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | State relating to courses of study on notarization and | ||||||
| 2 | electronic notarization; and | ||||||
| 3 | (4) be approved by the Secretary of State.
| ||||||
| 4 | (5 ILCS 312/2-102) (from Ch. 102, par. 202-102)
| ||||||
| 5 | Sec. 2-102. Application. | ||||||
| 6 | (a) Application for notary public commission. Every | ||||||
| 7 | applicant for appointment and commission as a notary shall | ||||||
| 8 | complete
an application in a format prescribed by the Secretary | ||||||
| 9 | of State to be filed with
the Secretary of State, stating:
| ||||||
| 10 | (1) (a) the applicant's official name, as it appears on | ||||||
| 11 | his or her current driver's license or state-issued | ||||||
| 12 | identification card;
| ||||||
| 13 | (2) (b) the county in which the applicant resides
or, | ||||||
| 14 | if the applicant is a resident of a state bordering | ||||||
| 15 | Illinois, the county
in Illinois in which that person's | ||||||
| 16 | principal place of work or principal place
of business is | ||||||
| 17 | located;
| ||||||
| 18 | (3) (c) the applicant's residence address, as it | ||||||
| 19 | appears on his or her current driver's license or | ||||||
| 20 | state-issued identification card;
| ||||||
| 21 | (4) (c-5) the applicant's business address if | ||||||
| 22 | different than the applicant's residence address, if | ||||||
| 23 | performing notarial acts constitutes any portion of the | ||||||
| 24 | applicant's job duties; | ||||||
| 25 | (5) (d) that the applicant has resided in the State of | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | Illinois for 30 days
preceding the application
or that the | ||||||
| 2 | applicant who is a resident of a state bordering Illinois | ||||||
| 3 | has
worked or maintained a business in Illinois for 30 days | ||||||
| 4 | preceding the
application;
| ||||||
| 5 | (6) (e) that the applicant is a citizen of the United | ||||||
| 6 | States or an alien
lawfully admitted for permanent | ||||||
| 7 | residence in the United States;
| ||||||
| 8 | (7) (f) the applicant's date of birth;
| ||||||
| 9 | (8) (g) that the applicant is able to read and write | ||||||
| 10 | the English language;
| ||||||
| 11 | (9) that the applicant has not had a prior application | ||||||
| 12 | or commission revoked due to a finding or decision by the | ||||||
| 13 | Secretary of State (h) that the applicant has never been | ||||||
| 14 | the holder of a notary public appointment that was revoked | ||||||
| 15 | or suspended
during the past 10 years;
| ||||||
| 16 | (10) (i) that the applicant has not been convicted of a | ||||||
| 17 | felony;
| ||||||
| 18 | (11) (i-5) that the applicant's signature authorizes | ||||||
| 19 | the Office of the Secretary of State to conduct a | ||||||
| 20 | verification to confirm the information provided in the | ||||||
| 21 | application, including a criminal background check of the | ||||||
| 22 | applicant, if necessary; and | ||||||
| 23 | (12) that the applicant has provided satisfactory | ||||||
| 24 | proof to the Secretary of State that the applicant has | ||||||
| 25 | successfully completed any required course of study on | ||||||
| 26 | notarization; and | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | (13) (j) any other information the Secretary of State | ||||||
| 2 | deems necessary.
| ||||||
| 3 | (b) Application for electronic notary public commission. | ||||||
| 4 | An application for an electronic notary public commission must | ||||||
| 5 | be filed with the Secretary of State using the online notary | ||||||
| 6 | application system. Every applicant for appointment and | ||||||
| 7 | commission as an electronic notary public shall complete an | ||||||
| 8 | application in a format prescribed by the Secretary of State to | ||||||
| 9 | be filed with the Secretary of State, stating: | ||||||
| 10 | (1) all information required to be included in an | ||||||
| 11 | application for appointment as an electronic notary | ||||||
| 12 | public, as provided under subsection (a); | ||||||
| 13 | (2) that the applicant is commissioned as a notary | ||||||
| 14 | public under this Act; | ||||||
| 15 | (3) the applicant's email address; | ||||||
| 16 | (4) that the applicant has provided satisfactory proof | ||||||
| 17 | to the Secretary of State that the applicant has | ||||||
| 18 | successfully completed any required course of study on | ||||||
| 19 | electronic notarization and passed a qualifying | ||||||
| 20 | examination; | ||||||
| 21 | (5) a description of the technology or device that the | ||||||
| 22 | applicant intends to use to create his or her electronic | ||||||
| 23 | signature in performing electronic notarial acts; | ||||||
| 24 | (6) the electronic signature of the applicant; and | ||||||
| 25 | (7) any other information the Secretary of State deems | ||||||
| 26 | necessary. | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | (c) Electronic notarial acts. Before an electronic notary | ||||||
| 2 | public performs an electronic notarial act using audio-video | ||||||
| 3 | communication, he or she must be granted an electronic notary | ||||||
| 4 | public commission by the Secretary of State under this
Section, | ||||||
| 5 | and identify the technology that the electronic notary public | ||||||
| 6 | intends to use, which must be approved by the Secretary of | ||||||
| 7 | State. | ||||||
| 8 | (d) Approval of commission. Upon the applicant's | ||||||
| 9 | fulfillment of the requirements for a notarial commission or an | ||||||
| 10 | electronic notary public commission, the Secretary of State | ||||||
| 11 | shall approve the commission or commissions and issue to the | ||||||
| 12 | applicant a unique commission number, along with a digital | ||||||
| 13 | certificate if approved for an electronic notary public | ||||||
| 14 | commission. | ||||||
| 15 | (e) Rejection of application. The Secretary of State may | ||||||
| 16 | reject an application for a notarial commission or an | ||||||
| 17 | electronic notary public commission if the applicant fails to | ||||||
| 18 | comply with any Section of this Act. | ||||||
| 19 | (Source: P.A. 99-112, eff. 1-1-16; 100-809, eff. 1-1-19.)
| ||||||
| 20 | (5 ILCS 312/2-102.5) | ||||||
| 21 | Sec. 2-102.5. Online notary public application system. | ||||||
| 22 | (a) The Secretary of State may establish and maintain an | ||||||
| 23 | online application system that permits an Illinois resident to | ||||||
| 24 | apply for appointment and commission as a notary public or | ||||||
| 25 | electronic notary public. | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | (b) Any such online notary public application system shall | ||||||
| 2 | employ security measures to ensure the accuracy and integrity | ||||||
| 3 | of notary public applications submitted electronically under | ||||||
| 4 | this Section. | ||||||
| 5 | (c) The Secretary of State may cross reference information | ||||||
| 6 | provided by applicants with that contained in the Secretary of | ||||||
| 7 | State's driver's license and Illinois Identification Card | ||||||
| 8 | databases in order to match the information submitted by | ||||||
| 9 | applicants, and may receive from those databases the | ||||||
| 10 | applicant's digitized signature upon a successful match of the | ||||||
| 11 | applicant's information with that information contained in the | ||||||
| 12 | databases. | ||||||
| 13 | (d) An online notary public application shall contain all | ||||||
| 14 | of the information that is required for a paper application as | ||||||
| 15 | provided in Section 2-102 of this Act. The applicant shall also | ||||||
| 16 | be required to provide: | ||||||
| 17 | (1) the applicant's full Illinois driver's license or | ||||||
| 18 | Illinois Identification Card number; | ||||||
| 19 | (2) the date of issuance of the Illinois driver's | ||||||
| 20 | license or Illinois Identification Card; and | ||||||
| 21 | (3) the applicant's e-mail address for notices to be | ||||||
| 22 | provided under this Section. | ||||||
| 23 | (e) For his or her application to be accepted, the | ||||||
| 24 | applicant shall mark the box associated with the following | ||||||
| 25 | statement included as part of the online notary public | ||||||
| 26 | application:
"By clicking on the box below, I swear or affirm | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | all of the following: | ||||||
| 2 | (1) I am the person whose name and identifying | ||||||
| 3 | information is provided on this form, and I desire to be | ||||||
| 4 | appointed and commissioned as a notary public in the State | ||||||
| 5 | of Illinois. | ||||||
| 6 | (2) All the information I have provided on this form is | ||||||
| 7 | true and correct as of the date I am submitting this form. | ||||||
| 8 | (3) I authorize the Secretary of State to utilize my | ||||||
| 9 | signature on file with the Secretary of State driver's | ||||||
| 10 | license and Illinois Identification Card databases and | ||||||
| 11 | understand that such signature will be used on this online | ||||||
| 12 | notary public application for appointment and commission | ||||||
| 13 | as a notary public or electronic notary as if I had signed | ||||||
| 14 | this form personally." | ||||||
| 15 | (4) I authorize the Secretary of State to utilize my | ||||||
| 16 | signature to conduct a verification to confirm the | ||||||
| 17 | information provided in the application, including a | ||||||
| 18 | criminal background check, if necessary." | ||||||
| 19 | (f) Immediately upon receiving a completed online notary | ||||||
| 20 | public application, the online system shall send by electronic | ||||||
| 21 | mail a confirmation notice that the application has been | ||||||
| 22 | received. Upon completion of the procedure outlined in | ||||||
| 23 | subsection (c) of this Section, the online notary public | ||||||
| 24 | application system shall send by electronic mail a notice | ||||||
| 25 | informing the applicant of whether the following information | ||||||
| 26 | has been matched with the Secretary of State driver's license | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | and Illinois Identification Card databases: | ||||||
| 2 | (1) that the applicant has an authentic Illinois | ||||||
| 3 | driver's license or Illinois Identification Card issued by | ||||||
| 4 | the Secretary of State and that the driver's license or | ||||||
| 5 | Illinois Identification Card number provided by the | ||||||
| 6 | applicant matches the driver's license or Illinois | ||||||
| 7 | Identification Card number for that person on file with the | ||||||
| 8 | Secretary of State; | ||||||
| 9 | (2) that the date of issuance of the Illinois driver's | ||||||
| 10 | license or Illinois Identification Card listed on the | ||||||
| 11 | application matches the date of issuance of that license or | ||||||
| 12 | card for that person on file with the Secretary of State; | ||||||
| 13 | (3) that the date of birth provided by the applicant | ||||||
| 14 | matches the date of birth for that person on file with the | ||||||
| 15 | Secretary of State; and | ||||||
| 16 | (4) that the residence address provided by the | ||||||
| 17 | applicant matches the residence address for that person on | ||||||
| 18 | file with the Secretary of State. | ||||||
| 19 | (g) If the information provided by the applicant matches | ||||||
| 20 | all of the criteria identified in subsection (f) of this | ||||||
| 21 | Section, the online notary public application system shall | ||||||
| 22 | retrieve from the Secretary of State's database files an | ||||||
| 23 | electronic copy of the applicant's signature from his or her | ||||||
| 24 | Illinois driver's license or Illinois Identification Card and | ||||||
| 25 | such signature shall be deemed to be the applicant's signature | ||||||
| 26 | on his or her online notary public application.
| ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | (Source: P.A. 99-112, eff. 1-1-16.)
| ||||||
| 2 | (5 ILCS 312/2-102.6 new) | ||||||
| 3 | Sec. 2-102.6. Database of notaries public. The Secretary of | ||||||
| 4 | State may maintain a database of notaries public on a | ||||||
| 5 | publicly-accessible website which: (1) any interested person | ||||||
| 6 | may use to verify the authority and good standing of a listed | ||||||
| 7 | individual to perform notarial acts; (2) indicates whether a | ||||||
| 8 | notary holds a valid electronic commission and is able to | ||||||
| 9 | lawfully perform electronic notarial acts; and (3) describes | ||||||
| 10 | any administrative or disciplinary action taken against the | ||||||
| 11 | notary by the Secretary of State.
| ||||||
| 12 | (5 ILCS 312/2-102.7 new) | ||||||
| 13 | Sec. 2-102.7. Registration of electronic notarization | ||||||
| 14 | technology. | ||||||
| 15 | (a) Notaries holding an electronic notary public | ||||||
| 16 | commission shall register the capability to notarize | ||||||
| 17 | electronically before performing any electronic notarial acts | ||||||
| 18 | with the Secretary of State. The registration shall be made | ||||||
| 19 | with the Secretary of State every time an electronic notary | ||||||
| 20 | public adopts a new or additional technology with which to | ||||||
| 21 | perform electronic notarial acts and the technology or vendor | ||||||
| 22 | must first be approved by the Secretary of State. | ||||||
| 23 | (b) An electronic notary public who registers the | ||||||
| 24 | capability of performing electronic notarial acts shall | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | provide the following information to the Secretary of State: | ||||||
| 2 | (1) the electronic technology or technologies to be | ||||||
| 3 | used in attaching or logically associating an electronic | ||||||
| 4 | notarial signature, seal, and certificate to an electronic | ||||||
| 5 | document; | ||||||
| 6 | (2) an exemplar of the notary's electronic signature | ||||||
| 7 | and official electronic seal; and | ||||||
| 8 | (3) any necessary instructions or techniques supplied | ||||||
| 9 | by the vendor that allow the notary's electronic signature | ||||||
| 10 | and official seal to be read. | ||||||
| 11 | (c) Prior to any electronic notarial acts being performed | ||||||
| 12 | in this State, the vendor of electronic notarization technology | ||||||
| 13 | must submit the technology to the Secretary of State and | ||||||
| 14 | receive approval by the Secretary of State for use in this | ||||||
| 15 | State. | ||||||
| 16 | (d) The Secretary of State shall adopt rules applicable to | ||||||
| 17 | this Section, setting forth the requirements with which vendors | ||||||
| 18 | of electronic notary platforms and technology must comply.
| ||||||
| 19 | (5 ILCS 312/2-103) (from Ch. 102, par. 202-103)
| ||||||
| 20 | Sec. 2-103. Appointment Fee. | ||||||
| 21 | (a) Every applicant for appointment and commission as a | ||||||
| 22 | notary public shall
pay to the Secretary of State a fee of $15 | ||||||
| 23 | $10. Ten dollars from each applicant fee shall be deposited in | ||||||
| 24 | the General Revenue Fund. Five dollars from each applicant fee | ||||||
| 25 | shall be deposited in the Electronic Notarization Fund.
| ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | (b) Every applicant for a commission as an electronic | ||||||
| 2 | notary public shall pay to the Secretary of State a fee of $25. | ||||||
| 3 | This fee is in addition to the fee proscribed for a commission | ||||||
| 4 | as a notary public and shall be deposited in the Electronic | ||||||
| 5 | Notarization Fund. | ||||||
| 6 | (Source: P.A. 85-1396.)
| ||||||
| 7 | (5 ILCS 312/2-104) (from Ch. 102, par. 202-104)
| ||||||
| 8 | Sec. 2-104. Oath. | ||||||
| 9 | (a) Every applicant for appointment and commission as a
| ||||||
| 10 | notary public shall take the following oath:
| ||||||
| 11 | "I, (name of applicant), solemnly affirm, under the penalty
| ||||||
| 12 | of perjury, that the answers to all questions in this | ||||||
| 13 | application are true,
complete, and correct; that I have | ||||||
| 14 | carefully read the notary law of this
State; and that, if | ||||||
| 15 | appointed and commissioned as a notary public, I will
perform | ||||||
| 16 | faithfully, to the best of my ability, all notarial acts in
| ||||||
| 17 | accordance with the law.".
| ||||||
| 18 | (b) In the event that the applicant completes a paper | ||||||
| 19 | application for appointment and commission as a notary public, | ||||||
| 20 | he or she shall take the oath in the presence of a person | ||||||
| 21 | qualified to administer an oath in this State. The printed oath | ||||||
| 22 | shall be followed by the signature of the applicant and | ||||||
| 23 | notarized as follows: | ||||||
| 24 | " ................. (Signature of applicant)
| ||||||
| 25 | State of Illinois | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | County of (name of county where the notarization is | ||||||
| 2 | completed) | ||||||
| 3 | Subscribed and affirmed before me on (insert date) by (name | ||||||
| 4 | of person who signature is being notarized).
| ||||||
| 5 | ................... (Official signature and official seal | ||||||
| 6 | of notary)".
| ||||||
| 7 | (c) In the event that the applicant completes an online | ||||||
| 8 | application for appointment and commission as a notary public, | ||||||
| 9 | he or she shall affirm the oath electronically. An electronic | ||||||
| 10 | affirmation of the oath in the online notary public application | ||||||
| 11 | system shall have the same force and effect as an oath sworn | ||||||
| 12 | and affirmed in person. | ||||||
| 13 | (Source: P.A. 99-112, eff. 1-1-16.)
| ||||||
| 14 | (5 ILCS 312/2-105) (from Ch. 102, par. 202-105)
| ||||||
| 15 | Sec. 2-105. Bond. | ||||||
| 16 | (a) Every application for appointment and commission as a | ||||||
| 17 | notary public shall
be accompanied by an executed bond | ||||||
| 18 | commencing on the date of the appointment
with a term of 4 | ||||||
| 19 | years, in the sum of $5,000, with, as surety thereon, a
company | ||||||
| 20 | qualified to write surety bonds in this State. The bond shall | ||||||
| 21 | be
conditioned upon the faithful performance of all notarial | ||||||
| 22 | acts in
accordance with this Act. The Secretary of State may | ||||||
| 23 | prescribe an official bond form.
| ||||||
| 24 | (b) An electronic notary public who performs electronic | ||||||
| 25 | notarial acts by means of audio-video communication shall | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | obtain and maintain a surety bond in the amount of $25,000 from | ||||||
| 2 | a surety or insurance company licensed to do business in this | ||||||
| 3 | State, and this bond shall be exclusively conditioned on the | ||||||
| 4 | faithful performance of electronic notarial acts by means of | ||||||
| 5 | audio-video communication. | ||||||
| 6 | (c) All surety bonds shall be filed with the Secretary of | ||||||
| 7 | State. | ||||||
| 8 | (d) In addition to the surety bond, a notary public shall | ||||||
| 9 | maintain an errors and omissions insurance policy from an | ||||||
| 10 | insurer authorized to transact business in this State, in the | ||||||
| 11 | minimum amount of $25,000 and on such terms as are specified by | ||||||
| 12 | the Secretary by rule and that are reasonably necessary to | ||||||
| 13 | protect the public. The applicant shall provide evidence of | ||||||
| 14 | this insurance policy to the Secretary of State. | ||||||
| 15 | (Source: P.A. 84-322.)
| ||||||
| 16 | (5 ILCS 312/2-106) (from Ch. 102, par. 202-106)
| ||||||
| 17 | Sec. 2-106. Appointment recorded by county clerk. The | ||||||
| 18 | appointment of the applicant as a notary public or an | ||||||
| 19 | electronic notary public is complete when the
commission is | ||||||
| 20 | recorded with the county clerk.
| ||||||
| 21 | The Secretary of State shall forward the applicant's | ||||||
| 22 | commission to the
county clerk of the county in which the | ||||||
| 23 | applicant resides
or, if the applicant is a resident of a state | ||||||
| 24 | bordering Illinois, the county
in Illinois in which the | ||||||
| 25 | applicant's principal place of work or principal place
of | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | business is located.
Upon receipt
thereof, the county clerk | ||||||
| 2 | shall notify the applicant of the action taken by
the Secretary | ||||||
| 3 | of State, and the applicant shall either appear at the
county | ||||||
| 4 | clerk's office to record the same and receive the commission or
| ||||||
| 5 | request by mail to have the commission sent to the applicant | ||||||
| 6 | with a
specimen signature of the applicant attached to the | ||||||
| 7 | request. The applicant
shall have a record of the appointment, | ||||||
| 8 | and the time when the commission
will expire, entered in the | ||||||
| 9 | records of the office of the county clerk. When
the applicant | ||||||
| 10 | appears before the county clerk, the applicant shall pay a
fee | ||||||
| 11 | of $5, at which time the county clerk shall then deliver the | ||||||
| 12 | commission
to the applicant.
| ||||||
| 13 | If the appointment is completed by mail, the applicant | ||||||
| 14 | shall pay the
county clerk a fee of $10.00, which shall be | ||||||
| 15 | submitted with the request to
the county clerk. The county | ||||||
| 16 | clerk shall then record the appointment and
send the commission | ||||||
| 17 | by mail to the applicant.
| ||||||
| 18 | If an applicant does not respond to the notification by the | ||||||
| 19 | county
clerk within 30 days, the county clerk shall again | ||||||
| 20 | notify the applicant
that the county clerk has received the | ||||||
| 21 | applicant's notary public or electronic notary public | ||||||
| 22 | commission
issued by the Secretary of State. The second notice | ||||||
| 23 | shall be in
substantially the following form:
| ||||||
| 24 | "The records of this office indicate that you have not | ||||||
| 25 | picked up your
notary public commission or electronic | ||||||
| 26 | notary public commission from the Office of the County | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | Clerk.
| ||||||
| 2 | The Illinois Notary Public Law requires you to appear in | ||||||
| 3 | person in the
clerk's office, record your commission, and | ||||||
| 4 | pay a fee of $5.00 to the
county clerk or request that your | ||||||
| 5 | commission be mailed to you. This request
must be | ||||||
| 6 | accompanied by a specimen of your signature and a $10.00 | ||||||
| 7 | fee payable
to the county clerk.
| ||||||
| 8 | Your appointment as a notary or an electronic notary is not | ||||||
| 9 | complete until the commission is
recorded with the county | ||||||
| 10 | clerk. Furthermore, if you do not make
arrangements with | ||||||
| 11 | the clerk for recording and delivery of your commission
| ||||||
| 12 | within 30 days from the date of this letter, the county | ||||||
| 13 | clerk will return
your commission to the Secretary of | ||||||
| 14 | State. Your commission will be
cancelled and your name will | ||||||
| 15 | be removed from the list of notaries and electronic | ||||||
| 16 | notaries in the
State of Illinois.
| ||||||
| 17 | I should also like to remind you that any person who | ||||||
| 18 | attests to any
document as a notary or an electronic notary | ||||||
| 19 | and is not a notary or an electronic notary in good | ||||||
| 20 | standing with the Office
of the Secretary of State is | ||||||
| 21 | guilty of official misconduct and may be
subject to a fine | ||||||
| 22 | or imprisonment.".
| ||||||
| 23 | The Secretary of State shall cancel the appointment of all | ||||||
| 24 | notaries or electronic notaries
whose commissions are returned | ||||||
| 25 | to his office by the county clerks. No
application fee will be | ||||||
| 26 | refunded and no bonding company is required to
issue a refund | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | when an appointment is cancelled. If a notary or electronic | ||||||
| 2 | notary fails to complete his or her commission more than twice | ||||||
| 3 | in the same application year, the notary or electronic notary | ||||||
| 4 | applicant shall not be entitled to reapply for a notarial or | ||||||
| 5 | electronic notarial commission until the following calendar | ||||||
| 6 | year.
| ||||||
| 7 | (Source: P.A. 100-201, eff. 8-18-17.)
| ||||||
| 8 | (5 ILCS 312/2-107) | ||||||
| 9 | Sec. 2-107. Notary public remittance agent. | ||||||
| 10 | (a) Every company, corporation, association, organization, | ||||||
| 11 | or person that remits notary public applications to the | ||||||
| 12 | Secretary of State on behalf of applicants for appointment and | ||||||
| 13 | commission as a notary public, for compensation or otherwise, | ||||||
| 14 | shall comply with standards to qualify for licensure as a | ||||||
| 15 | notary public remittance agent. | ||||||
| 16 | (b) The standards to qualify for licensure as a notary | ||||||
| 17 | public remittance agent shall include, but not be limited to, | ||||||
| 18 | the following: | ||||||
| 19 | (1) the applicant has not been the subject of any | ||||||
| 20 | administrative citation, criminal complaint, or civil | ||||||
| 21 | action in the State of Illinois arising from his or her | ||||||
| 22 | duties as a notary public remittance agent; | ||||||
| 23 | (2) the agent holds a surety bond in the amount of | ||||||
| 24 | $20,000 for the purposes of acting as a remittance agent; | ||||||
| 25 | and | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | (3) the agent complies with all requirements set forth | ||||||
| 2 | by the Secretary of State for the submission of the notary | ||||||
| 3 | public applications. | ||||||
| 4 | (c) A notary public remittance agent submitting an | ||||||
| 5 | application on behalf of an applicant for appointment and | ||||||
| 6 | commission as a notary public shall remit the application and | ||||||
| 7 | fee provided by the applicant within 30 days after receiving | ||||||
| 8 | the application and fee from the applicant. | ||||||
| 9 | (d) The agent shall not modify a notary's application | ||||||
| 10 | information in any way prior to submitting the application | ||||||
| 11 | information to the Secretary of State. | ||||||
| 12 | (e) The agent shall not issue a notary seal or notary stamp | ||||||
| 13 | to the notary applicant until sufficient evidence has been | ||||||
| 14 | received that the notary applicant has received a commission | ||||||
| 15 | from the appropriate county clerk. | ||||||
| 16 | (f) Any violation of this Act, including this Section, may | ||||||
| 17 | result in an administrative citation, criminal complaint, or | ||||||
| 18 | civil action arising from his or her duties as a notary public | ||||||
| 19 | or notary public remittance agent. | ||||||
| 20 | (g) (c) The provisions of this Section do not apply to | ||||||
| 21 | units of local government or private business that are making | ||||||
| 22 | applications, and providing application fees for their | ||||||
| 23 | employees.
| ||||||
| 24 | (h) The Secretary of State shall adopt rules applicable to | ||||||
| 25 | this Section. | ||||||
| 26 | (Source: P.A. 101-366, eff. 1-1-20.)
| ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | (5 ILCS 312/3-101) (from Ch. 102, par. 203-101)
| ||||||
| 2 | Sec. 3-101. Official seal. | ||||||
| 3 | (a) Notary public official seal. Each notary public shall, | ||||||
| 4 | upon receiving the notary commission from the county
clerk, | ||||||
| 5 | obtain an official rubber stamp seal with which the notary | ||||||
| 6 | shall
authenticate his official acts. The rubber stamp seal | ||||||
| 7 | shall contain the
following information:
| ||||||
| 8 | (1)
the words "Official Seal";
| ||||||
| 9 | (2)
the notary's official name;
| ||||||
| 10 | (3)
the words "Notary Public", "State of Illinois", and | ||||||
| 11 | "My commission
expires ............ (commission expiration | ||||||
| 12 | date)"; and
| ||||||
| 13 | (4)
a serrated or milled edge border in a rectangular | ||||||
| 14 | form not more than
one inch in height by two and one-half | ||||||
| 15 | inches in length surrounding the information.
| ||||||
| 16 | (b) (Blank). | ||||||
| 17 | (b-5) Electronic notary public electronic seal and | ||||||
| 18 | electronic signature. An electronic notarial act must be | ||||||
| 19 | evidenced by the following, which must be attached to or | ||||||
| 20 | logically associated with the electronic document that is the | ||||||
| 21 | subject of the electronic notarial act and which must be | ||||||
| 22 | immediately perceptible and reproducible: | ||||||
| 23 | (1) the electronic signature of the electronic notary | ||||||
| 24 | public; | ||||||
| 25 | (2) the electronic seal of the electronic notary | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | public; | ||||||
| 2 | (3) the words "Notary Public", "State of Illinois", and | ||||||
| 3 | "My commission expires (commission expiration date)"; and | ||||||
| 4 | (4) language explicitly stating that the electronic | ||||||
| 5 | notarial act was performed using audio-video | ||||||
| 6 | communication, if applicable. | ||||||
| 7 | (c) Registered devices. An electronic notary public shall | ||||||
| 8 | take reasonable steps to ensure that any registered device used | ||||||
| 9 | to create an electronic seal or electronic signature is current | ||||||
| 10 | and has not been revoked or terminated by the device's issuing | ||||||
| 11 | or registering authority. | ||||||
| 12 | (d) Electronic signature and seal secure. An electronic | ||||||
| 13 | notary public shall keep the electronic notary public's | ||||||
| 14 | electronic signature and electronic seal secure and under the | ||||||
| 15 | notary public's exclusive control. The electronic notary | ||||||
| 16 | public shall not allow another person to use his or her | ||||||
| 17 | electronic signature or electronic seal. | ||||||
| 18 | (e) Electronic notarial certificate. An electronic notary | ||||||
| 19 | public shall attach his or her electronic signature and | ||||||
| 20 | electronic seal to the electronic notarial certificate of an | ||||||
| 21 | electronic document in a manner that is capable of independent | ||||||
| 22 | verification and renders any subsequent change or modification | ||||||
| 23 | to the electronic document evident. | ||||||
| 24 | (f) Electronic signature and seal compromised. An | ||||||
| 25 | electronic notary public shall notify an appropriate law | ||||||
| 26 | enforcement agency, the vendor of the electronic notary | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | technology, and the Secretary of State no later than the next | ||||||
| 2 | business day of the theft, compromise, or vandalism of the | ||||||
| 3 | electronic notary public's electronic signature or electronic | ||||||
| 4 | seal. | ||||||
| 5 | (g) Electronic signature and seal access. The electronic | ||||||
| 6 | notary public shall not disclose any access information used to | ||||||
| 7 | affix the electronic notary public's signature and seal except | ||||||
| 8 | when requested by law enforcement, the courts, and with | ||||||
| 9 | reasonable precautions, electronic document preparation, and | ||||||
| 10 | transmission vendors. | ||||||
| 11 | (Source: P.A. 100-81, eff. 1-1-18.)
| ||||||
| 12 | (5 ILCS 312/3-101.5 new) | ||||||
| 13 | Sec. 3-101.5. Security of electronic signature and seal. | ||||||
| 14 | The following requirements apply only to electronic notaries | ||||||
| 15 | public. | ||||||
| 16 | (a) The electronic signature and electronic seal of an | ||||||
| 17 | electronic notary public must be used only for the purposes of | ||||||
| 18 | performing electronic notarial acts. | ||||||
| 19 | (b) An electronic notary public shall safeguard his or her | ||||||
| 20 | electronic signature, the electronic seal, and all notarial | ||||||
| 21 | records maintained by the notary public as follows: | ||||||
| 22 | (1) when not in use, the electronic notary public shall | ||||||
| 23 | keep the electronic signature, electronic seal, and all | ||||||
| 24 | notarial records secure under the exclusive control of the | ||||||
| 25 | notary public and protected by a password where applicable; | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | (2) an electronic notary public shall not permit his or | ||||||
| 2 | her electronic signature or electronic seal to be used by | ||||||
| 3 | any other person; and | ||||||
| 4 | (3) an electronic notary public shall not surrender or | ||||||
| 5 | destroy his or her electronic notarial records, except as | ||||||
| 6 | otherwise required by the order of a court, order of law | ||||||
| 7 | enforcement, or as allowed under any Section of this Act or | ||||||
| 8 | any rules adopted pursuant thereto. | ||||||
| 9 | (c) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (d), an | ||||||
| 10 | electronic notary public, no later than the next business day | ||||||
| 11 | following discovering that his or her electronic signature or | ||||||
| 12 | electronic seal has been stolen, lost, damaged, or otherwise | ||||||
| 13 | rendered incapable of affixing a legible image, shall: | ||||||
| 14 | (1) inform the appropriate law enforcement agency in | ||||||
| 15 | the case of theft or vandalism; and | ||||||
| 16 | (2) notify the Secretary of State and the vendor from | ||||||
| 17 | which the electronic notary public obtained the electronic | ||||||
| 18 | signature or electronic seal in writing, including, | ||||||
| 19 | without limitation, a signature using the name under which | ||||||
| 20 | the electronic notary public is commissioned pursuant to | ||||||
| 21 | Section 2-106. | ||||||
| 22 | (d) An electronic notary public shall take reasonable steps | ||||||
| 23 | to maintain the technology or device used to create his or her | ||||||
| 24 | electronic signature, and to ensure that the technology or | ||||||
| 25 | device has not been recalled, revoked, terminated, or otherwise | ||||||
| 26 | rendered ineffective or unsecure by the entity that created the | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | technology or device. Upon learning that the technology or | ||||||
| 2 | device used to create his or her electronic signature has been | ||||||
| 3 | rendered ineffective or unsecure, an electronic notary public | ||||||
| 4 | shall cease performing electronic notarial acts until: | ||||||
| 5 | (1) a new technology or device is acquired; and | ||||||
| 6 | (2) the electronic notary public sends an electronic | ||||||
| 7 | message to the Secretary of State that includes the | ||||||
| 8 | electronic signature of the electronic notary public | ||||||
| 9 | required under paragraph (6) of subsection (b) of Section | ||||||
| 10 | 2-102 relating to the new technology or device. | ||||||
| 11 | (e) The electronic notary public's electronic signature | ||||||
| 12 | and electronic seal are deemed to be reliable if the following | ||||||
| 13 | requirements are met: | ||||||
| 14 | (1) it is unique to the electronic notary public; | ||||||
| 15 | (2) it is capable of independent verification; | ||||||
| 16 | (3) it is retained under the electronic notary public's | ||||||
| 17 | sole control; | ||||||
| 18 | (4) it is attached to or logically associated with the | ||||||
| 19 | electronic document in a tamper evident manner. Evidence of | ||||||
| 20 | tampering pursuant to this standard may be used to | ||||||
| 21 | determine whether the electronic notarial act is valid or | ||||||
| 22 | invalid; and | ||||||
| 23 | (5) the electronic notary public has chosen technology | ||||||
| 24 | or a vendor that meets the minimum requirements established | ||||||
| 25 | by the Secretary of State and is approved by the Secretary | ||||||
| 26 | of State.
| ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | (5 ILCS 312/3-103) (from Ch. 102, par. 203-103)
| ||||||
| 2 | Sec. 3-103. Notice. | ||||||
| 3 | (a) Every notary public who is not an attorney or an | ||||||
| 4 | accredited immigration representative who advertises the | ||||||
| 5 | services
of a notary public in a language other than English, | ||||||
| 6 | whether by radio,
television, signs, pamphlets, newspapers, | ||||||
| 7 | electronic communications, or other written communication,
| ||||||
| 8 | with the exception of a single desk plaque,
shall include in | ||||||
| 9 | the document, advertisement, stationery, letterhead, business | ||||||
| 10 | card, or other comparable written or electronic material the | ||||||
| 11 | following: notice in English and the
language in which the | ||||||
| 12 | written or electronic communication appears. This notice shall | ||||||
| 13 | be of a
conspicuous size, if in writing or electronic | ||||||
| 14 | communication, and shall state: "I AM NOT AN ATTORNEY LICENSED | ||||||
| 15 | TO
PRACTICE LAW IN ILLINOIS. I AM NOT ALLOWED TO DRAFT LEGAL | ||||||
| 16 | DOCUMENTS OR RECORDS, NOR MAY I GIVE LEGAL ADVICE ON ANY | ||||||
| 17 | MATTER, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, MATTERS OF IMMIGRATION, | ||||||
| 18 | OR ACCEPT OR CHARGE FEES FOR THE PERFORMANCE OF THOSE | ||||||
| 19 | ACTIVITIES
". If such advertisement is by radio or television, | ||||||
| 20 | the
statement may be modified but must include substantially | ||||||
| 21 | the same message.
| ||||||
| 22 | A notary public shall not, in any document, advertisement, | ||||||
| 23 | stationery, letterhead, business card, electronic | ||||||
| 24 | communication, or other comparable written material describing | ||||||
| 25 | the role of the notary public, literally translate from English | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | into another language terms or titles including, but not | ||||||
| 2 | limited to, notary public, notary, licensed, attorney, lawyer, | ||||||
| 3 | or any other term that implies the person is an attorney. To | ||||||
| 4 | illustrate, the word "notario" is prohibited under this | ||||||
| 5 | provision.
| ||||||
| 6 | Failure to follow the procedures in this Section shall | ||||||
| 7 | result in a fine of $1,500 for each written violation. The | ||||||
| 8 | second violation shall result in permanent revocation of the | ||||||
| 9 | commission of notary public. Violations shall not preempt or | ||||||
| 10 | preclude additional appropriate civil or criminal penalties.
| ||||||
| 11 | (b) All notaries public required to comply with the | ||||||
| 12 | provisions of
subsection (a) shall prominently post at their | ||||||
| 13 | place of business as recorded
with the Secretary of State | ||||||
| 14 | pursuant to Section 2-102 of this Act a schedule
of fees | ||||||
| 15 | established by law which a notary public may charge. The fee
| ||||||
| 16 | schedule shall be written in English and in the non-English | ||||||
| 17 | language in
which notary services were solicited and shall | ||||||
| 18 | contain the disavowal of
legal representation required above in | ||||||
| 19 | subsection (a), unless such notice of disavowal
is already | ||||||
| 20 | prominently posted.
| ||||||
| 21 | (c) No notary public, agency or any other person who is not | ||||||
| 22 | an
attorney shall represent, hold themselves out or advertise | ||||||
| 23 | that they are
experts on immigration matters or provide any | ||||||
| 24 | other assistance that requires legal analysis, legal judgment, | ||||||
| 25 | or interpretation of the law unless they are a designated | ||||||
| 26 | entity as
defined pursuant to Section 245a.1 of Part 245a of | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | the Code of Federal
Regulations (8 CFR 245a.1) or an entity | ||||||
| 2 | accredited by the Board of Immigration Appeals.
| ||||||
| 3 | (c-5) In addition to the notice required under subsection | ||||||
| 4 | (a), every notary public who is subject to subsection (a) | ||||||
| 5 | shall, prior to rendering notary services or electronic notary | ||||||
| 6 | services, provide any person seeking notary or electronic | ||||||
| 7 | notary services services with a written acknowledgment that | ||||||
| 8 | substantially states, in English and the language used in the | ||||||
| 9 | advertisement for notary services the following: "I AM NOT AN | ||||||
| 10 | ATTORNEY LICENSED TO PRACTICE LAW IN ILLINOIS. I AM NOT ALLOWED | ||||||
| 11 | TO DRAFT LEGAL DOCUMENTS OR RECORDS, NOR MAY I GIVE LEGAL | ||||||
| 12 | ADVICE ON ANY MATTER OR ACCEPT OR CHARGE FEES FOR THE | ||||||
| 13 | PERFORMANCE OF THOSE ACTIVITIES". The Office of the Secretary | ||||||
| 14 | of State shall translate this acknowledgement into Spanish and | ||||||
| 15 | any other language the Secretary of State may deem necessary to | ||||||
| 16 | achieve the requirements of this subsection (c-5), and shall | ||||||
| 17 | make the translations available on the website of the Secretary | ||||||
| 18 | of State. This acknowledgment shall be signed by the recipient | ||||||
| 19 | of notary services or electronic notary services before notary | ||||||
| 20 | services or electronic notary services are rendered, and the | ||||||
| 21 | notary shall retain copies of all signed acknowledgments | ||||||
| 22 | throughout their present commission and for 2 years thereafter. | ||||||
| 23 | Notaries shall provide recipients of notary services or | ||||||
| 24 | electronic notary services with a copy of their signed | ||||||
| 25 | acknowledgment at the time services are rendered. This | ||||||
| 26 | provision shall not apply to notary services or electronic | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | notary services related to documents prepared or produced in | ||||||
| 2 | accordance with the Illinois Election Code. | ||||||
| 3 | (d) Any person who aids, abets or otherwise induces another | ||||||
| 4 | person to
give false information concerning immigration status | ||||||
| 5 | shall be guilty of a
Class A misdemeanor for a first offense | ||||||
| 6 | and a Class 3 felony for a second
or subsequent offense | ||||||
| 7 | committed within 5 years of a previous conviction for
the same | ||||||
| 8 | offense.
| ||||||
| 9 | Any notary public who violates the provisions of this | ||||||
| 10 | Section shall be
guilty of official misconduct and subject to | ||||||
| 11 | fine or imprisonment.
| ||||||
| 12 | Nothing in this Section shall preclude any consumer of | ||||||
| 13 | notary public
services from pursuing other civil remedies | ||||||
| 14 | available under the law.
| ||||||
| 15 | (e) No notary public who is not an attorney or an | ||||||
| 16 | accredited representative shall accept payment in exchange for | ||||||
| 17 | providing legal advice or any other assistance that requires | ||||||
| 18 | legal analysis, legal judgment, or interpretation of the law. | ||||||
| 19 | (f) Violation of subsection (e) is a business offense | ||||||
| 20 | punishable by a fine of 3 times the amount received for | ||||||
| 21 | services, or $1,001 minimum, and restitution of the amount paid | ||||||
| 22 | to the consumer. Nothing in this Section shall be construed to | ||||||
| 23 | preempt nor preclude additional appropriate civil remedies or | ||||||
| 24 | criminal charges available under law. | ||||||
| 25 | (g) If a notary public or electronic notary public of this | ||||||
| 26 | State is convicted of a 2 or more business offense offenses | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | involving a violation of this Act within a 12-month period | ||||||
| 2 | while commissioned, or of 3 or more business offenses involving | ||||||
| 3 | a violation of this Act within a 5-year period regardless of | ||||||
| 4 | being commissioned, the Secretary shall automatically revoke | ||||||
| 5 | the notary public commission or electronic notary public | ||||||
| 6 | commission of that person on the date that the person's most | ||||||
| 7 | recent business offense conviction is entered as a final | ||||||
| 8 | judgment.
| ||||||
| 9 | (Source: P.A. 100-81, eff. 1-1-18; 101-465, eff. 1-1-20.)
| ||||||
| 10 | (5 ILCS 312/3-104) (from Ch. 102, par. 203-104)
| ||||||
| 11 | Sec. 3-104. Maximum Fee. | ||||||
| 12 | (a) Except as otherwise provided in this subsection (a) | ||||||
| 13 | provided in subsection (b) of this Section, the maximum
fee for | ||||||
| 14 | non-electronic notarization in this State is $1.00 for any | ||||||
| 15 | notarial act performed and, until July 1, 2018, up to $25 for | ||||||
| 16 | any notarial act performed pursuant to Section 3-102.
| ||||||
| 17 | (b) Fees for a notary public, agency, or any other person | ||||||
| 18 | who is not
an attorney or an accredited representative filling | ||||||
| 19 | out immigration forms shall be limited to the following:
| ||||||
| 20 | (1) $10 per form completion;
| ||||||
| 21 | (2) $10 per page for the translation of a non-English | ||||||
| 22 | language into English where such translation is required | ||||||
| 23 | for immigration forms;
| ||||||
| 24 | (3) $5 $1 for notarizing;
| ||||||
| 25 | (4) $3 to execute any procedures necessary to obtain a | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | document required to complete immigration forms; and
| ||||||
| 2 | (5) A maximum of $75 for one complete application.
| ||||||
| 3 | Fees authorized under this subsection shall not include | ||||||
| 4 | application fees
required to be submitted with immigration | ||||||
| 5 | applications.
| ||||||
| 6 | (b) The maximum fee in this State is $25 for any electronic | ||||||
| 7 | notarial act performed pursuant to this Act. An electronic | ||||||
| 8 | notary public may charge a reasonable fee to recover any cost | ||||||
| 9 | of providing a copy of an entry or a recording of an | ||||||
| 10 | audio-video communication in an electronic journal maintained | ||||||
| 11 | pursuant to Section 3-107. | ||||||
| 12 | (c) Any person who violates the provisions of this | ||||||
| 13 | subsection (a) or (b) shall be guilty
of a Class A misdemeanor | ||||||
| 14 | for a first offense and a Class 3 felony for a
second or | ||||||
| 15 | subsequent offense committed within 5 years of a previous
| ||||||
| 16 | conviction for the same offense.
| ||||||
| 17 | (d) (c) Upon his own information or upon complaint of any | ||||||
| 18 | person, the
Attorney General or any State's Attorney, or their | ||||||
| 19 | designee, may maintain
an action for injunctive relief in the | ||||||
| 20 | court against any notary public or
any other person who
| ||||||
| 21 | violates the provisions of subsection (a) or (b) of this | ||||||
| 22 | Section. These
remedies are in addition to, and not in | ||||||
| 23 | substitution for, other available remedies.
| ||||||
| 24 | If the Attorney General or any State's Attorney fails to | ||||||
| 25 | bring an action
as provided pursuant to this subsection within | ||||||
| 26 | 90 days of receipt of a complaint, any person may file a civil
| ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | action to enforce the provisions of this subsection and | ||||||
| 2 | maintain an action
for injunctive relief.
| ||||||
| 3 | (e) (d) All notaries public must provide receipts and keep | ||||||
| 4 | records for fees accepted for services provided. Failure to | ||||||
| 5 | provide receipts and keep records that can be presented as | ||||||
| 6 | evidence of no wrongdoing shall be construed as a presumptive | ||||||
| 7 | admission of allegations raised in complaints against the | ||||||
| 8 | notary for violations related to accepting prohibited fees.
| ||||||
| 9 | (Source: P.A. 98-29, eff. 6-21-13.)
| ||||||
| 10 | (5 ILCS 312/3-105) (from Ch. 102, par. 203-105)
| ||||||
| 11 | Sec. 3-105. Authority. | ||||||
| 12 | (a) A notary public shall have authority to perform | ||||||
| 13 | notarial acts, or electronic notarial acts, if the notary holds | ||||||
| 14 | an electronic notary public commission, throughout
the State so | ||||||
| 15 | long as the notary resides in the same county in which the
| ||||||
| 16 | notary was commissioned
or, if the notary is a resident of a | ||||||
| 17 | state bordering Illinois, so long as the
notary's principal | ||||||
| 18 | place of work or principal place of business is in the same
| ||||||
| 19 | county in Illinois in which the notary was commissioned.
| ||||||
| 20 | (b) An electronic notary public who is physically located | ||||||
| 21 | in this State may perform an electronic notarial act using | ||||||
| 22 | communication technology in accordance with this Article and | ||||||
| 23 | any rules adopted by the Secretary of State for a remotely | ||||||
| 24 | located individual who is physically located: (i) in this | ||||||
| 25 | State; or (ii) outside of this State, but not outside the | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | United States. | ||||||
| 2 | (Source: P.A. 91-818, eff. 6-13-00.)
| ||||||
| 3 | (5 ILCS 312/3-106) (from Ch. 102, par. 203-106)
| ||||||
| 4 | Sec. 3-106. Certificate of Authority.
Upon the receipt of | ||||||
| 5 | a written request, the notarized document, and a fee
of $2 | ||||||
| 6 | payable to the Secretary of State or County Clerk, the Office | ||||||
| 7 | of
the Secretary of State or County Clerk shall provide a | ||||||
| 8 | certificate of
authority in substantially the following form:
| ||||||
| 9 | I ............... (Secretary of State or ......... County | ||||||
| 10 | Clerk) of
the State of Illinois, which office is an office of | ||||||
| 11 | record having a seal,
certify that ........ (notary's name), by | ||||||
| 12 | whom the foregoing or annexed
document was notarized or | ||||||
| 13 | electronically notarized, was, on (insert date), appointed and | ||||||
| 14 | commissioned a notary public in and for the State of
Illinois
| ||||||
| 15 | and that as such, full faith and credit is and ought to be | ||||||
| 16 | given to this
notary's official attestations. In testimony | ||||||
| 17 | whereof, I have affixed my
signature and the seal of this | ||||||
| 18 | office on (insert date).
| ||||||
| 19 | ................................................
| ||||||
| 20 | (Secretary of State or ...... County Clerk).
| ||||||
| 21 | (Source: P.A. 91-357, eff. 7-29-99.)
| ||||||
| 22 | (5 ILCS 312/3-107 new) | ||||||
| 23 | Sec. 3-107. Journal. | ||||||
| 24 | (a) A notary public or an electronic notary public shall | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | keep a journal of each notarial act or electronic notarial act | ||||||
| 2 | which includes, without limitation, the requirements of | ||||||
| 3 | subsection (b), but does not include any electronic signatures | ||||||
| 4 | of the person for whom an electronic notarial act was performed | ||||||
| 5 | and any witnesses. | ||||||
| 6 | (b) A notarial or electronic notarial journal shall contain | ||||||
| 7 | the following information: | ||||||
| 8 | (1) a description of each notarial act or electronic | ||||||
| 9 | notarial act, and if the notarization was done | ||||||
| 10 | electronically, it shall also include whether the | ||||||
| 11 | electronic notarial act was performed using audio-video | ||||||
| 12 | communication; | ||||||
| 13 | (2) the date and time of the notarization or electronic | ||||||
| 14 | notarization; | ||||||
| 15 | (3) the type of notarial act and whether the act was | ||||||
| 16 | performed as a traditional notarial act or an electronic | ||||||
| 17 | notarial act; | ||||||
| 18 | (4) the type, the title, or a description of the | ||||||
| 19 | document, proceeding, or electronic document or electronic | ||||||
| 20 | proceeding; | ||||||
| 21 | (5) the printed name and address of each principal | ||||||
| 22 | involved in the transaction or proceeding; | ||||||
| 23 | (6) evidence of the identity of each principal involved | ||||||
| 24 | in the transaction or proceeding in the form of: | ||||||
| 25 | (A) a statement that the person is personally known | ||||||
| 26 | to the notary public; | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | (B) a notation of the type of identification | ||||||
| 2 | document provided to the notary public; | ||||||
| 3 | (C) a record of the identity verification made | ||||||
| 4 | under paragraph (3) of subsection (d) of Section | ||||||
| 5 | 6A-103, if applicable, and if the notarial act was | ||||||
| 6 | performed electronically; and | ||||||
| 7 | (D) The following: | ||||||
| 8 | (i) the printed name and address of each | ||||||
| 9 | credible witness swearing to or affirming the | ||||||
| 10 | person's identity; and | ||||||
| 11 | (ii) for each credible witness not personally | ||||||
| 12 | known to the notary or electronic notary, a | ||||||
| 13 | description of the type of identification | ||||||
| 14 | documents or identification verification provided | ||||||
| 15 | to the notary or electronic notary; | ||||||
| 16 | (7) if a notarial act is performed electronically, the | ||||||
| 17 | journal shall also include a recording of any audio-video | ||||||
| 18 | recording that is the basis for satisfactory evidence of | ||||||
| 19 | identity and a notation of the type of identification | ||||||
| 20 | presented as evidence; and | ||||||
| 21 | (8) the fee, if any, charged for the notarization or | ||||||
| 22 | electronic notarization. | ||||||
| 23 | (c) A notary or electronic notary shall: | ||||||
| 24 | (1) maintain and protect the journal at all times under | ||||||
| 25 | his or her sole control and surrender or destroy the | ||||||
| 26 | journal only by rule of law, by court order, or at the | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | direction of the Secretary of State; | ||||||
| 2 | (2) provide for lawful inspection and copying of the | ||||||
| 3 | journal; | ||||||
| 4 | (3) if the journal is electronic, enable access by a | ||||||
| 5 | password or other secure means of authentication; | ||||||
| 6 | (4) be capable of providing tangible or electronic | ||||||
| 7 | copies of any entry made in the journal; | ||||||
| 8 | (5) ensure the integrity, security, and authenticity | ||||||
| 9 | of the journal; | ||||||
| 10 | (6) maintain a backup of any journal maintained | ||||||
| 11 | electronically; and | ||||||
| 12 | (7) protect the backup record from unauthorized use if | ||||||
| 13 | the journal is maintained electronically. | ||||||
| 14 | (d) A notary or electronic notary may maintain his or her | ||||||
| 15 | journal in either paper form or electronic form and may | ||||||
| 16 | maintain more than one journal or electronic journal to record | ||||||
| 17 | notarial acts or electronic notarial acts. | ||||||
| 18 | (e) The fact that the employer or contractor of a notary or | ||||||
| 19 | electronic notary keeps a record of notarial acts or electronic | ||||||
| 20 | notarial acts does not relieve the notary public of the duties | ||||||
| 21 | required by this Section. A notary public or electronic notary | ||||||
| 22 | public shall not surrender the journal to an employer upon | ||||||
| 23 | termination of employment and an employer shall not retain the | ||||||
| 24 | journal of an employee when the employment of the notary public | ||||||
| 25 | or electronic notary public ceases. | ||||||
| 26 | (f) The Secretary of State may suspend the commission of a | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | notary or electronic notary who fails to produce any journal | ||||||
| 2 | entry within 10 days after receipt of a request from the | ||||||
| 3 | Secretary of State. | ||||||
| 4 | (g) The journal required by this Section shall be | ||||||
| 5 | maintained for at least 5 years after the date of the | ||||||
| 6 | transaction or proceeding. | ||||||
| 7 | (h) Upon surrender, revocation, or expiration of a | ||||||
| 8 | commission as a notary or electronic notary, all notarial | ||||||
| 9 | records or electronic notarial records required under this | ||||||
| 10 | section, except as otherwise provided by law, must be kept by | ||||||
| 11 | the notary public or electronic notary for a period of 5 years | ||||||
| 12 | after the termination of the registration of the notary public | ||||||
| 13 | or electronic notary public. | ||||||
| 14 | (i) If the journal of a notary public or electronic notary | ||||||
| 15 | public is lost, stolen, or compromised, the notary or | ||||||
| 16 | electronic notary shall notify the Secretary of State on | ||||||
| 17 | discovery of the loss, theft, or breach of security.
| ||||||
| 18 | (5 ILCS 312/4-101) (from Ch. 102, par. 204-101)
| ||||||
| 19 | Sec. 4-101. Changes causing commission to cease to be in | ||||||
| 20 | effect. | ||||||
| 21 | (a) When any notary public legally changes his or her name, | ||||||
| 22 | changes his or her residential address or business address, or | ||||||
| 23 | email address, without notifying the Index Department of the | ||||||
| 24 | Secretary of State in writing within 30 days thereof,
or, if | ||||||
| 25 | the notary public is a resident of a state bordering Illinois, | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | no
longer maintains a principal place of work or principal | ||||||
| 2 | place of business in
the same county in Illinois in which he or | ||||||
| 3 | she was commissioned, the
commission of that notary
ceases to | ||||||
| 4 | be in effect. When the commission of a notary public ceases to | ||||||
| 5 | be in effect, his or her notarial seal or electronic notary | ||||||
| 6 | seal shall be surrendered to the Secretary of State, and his or | ||||||
| 7 | her certificate of notarial commission or certificate of | ||||||
| 8 | electronic notarial commission shall be destroyed.
These | ||||||
| 9 | individuals who desire to again become a notary public must | ||||||
| 10 | file a new
application, bond, and oath with the Secretary of | ||||||
| 11 | State.
| ||||||
| 12 | (b) Any change to the information submitted by an | ||||||
| 13 | electronic notary public in registering to perform electronic | ||||||
| 14 | notarial acts in compliance with any Section of this Act shall | ||||||
| 15 | be reported by the notary within 30 business days to the | ||||||
| 16 | Secretary of State. | ||||||
| 17 | (c) Any notary public or electronic notary public that | ||||||
| 18 | fails to comply with this Section shall be prohibited from | ||||||
| 19 | obtaining a new commission for a period of not less than 5 | ||||||
| 20 | years. | ||||||
| 21 | (Source: P.A. 100-809, eff. 1-1-19.)
| ||||||
| 22 | (5 ILCS 312/5-101) (from Ch. 102, par. 205-101)
| ||||||
| 23 | Sec. 5-101. Reappointment. No person is automatically | ||||||
| 24 | reappointed as a notary public or electronic notary public.
At | ||||||
| 25 | least 60 days prior to the expiration of a commission, the | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | Secretary of
State shall mail notice of the expiration date to | ||||||
| 2 | the holder of a
commission. Every notary public or electronic | ||||||
| 3 | notary public who is an applicant for reappointment shall | ||||||
| 4 | comply with the provisions of Article II of this Act.
| ||||||
| 5 | (Source: P.A. 84-322.)
| ||||||
| 6 | (5 ILCS 312/5-102) (from Ch. 102, par. 205-102)
| ||||||
| 7 | Sec. 5-102. Solicitation to Purchase Bond. No person shall | ||||||
| 8 | solicit any notary public and offer to provide a surety
bond | ||||||
| 9 | more than 60 days in advance of the expiration date of the | ||||||
| 10 | notary
public's commission of a notary public or electronic | ||||||
| 11 | notary public.
| ||||||
| 12 | Nor shall any person solicit any applicant for a commission | ||||||
| 13 | or
reappointment thereof and offer to provide a surety bond for | ||||||
| 14 | the notary
commission unless any such solicitation | ||||||
| 15 | specifically sets forth in bold
face type not less than 1/4 | ||||||
| 16 | inch in height the following: "WE ARE NOT
ASSOCIATED WITH ANY | ||||||
| 17 | STATE OR LOCAL GOVERNMENTAL AGENCY".
| ||||||
| 18 | Whenever it shall appear to the Secretary of State that any | ||||||
| 19 | person is
engaged or is about to engage in any acts or | ||||||
| 20 | practices which constitute or
will constitute a violation of | ||||||
| 21 | the provisions of this Section, the
Secretary of State may, in | ||||||
| 22 | his discretion, through the Attorney General,
apply for an | ||||||
| 23 | injunction, and, upon a proper showing, any circuit court shall
| ||||||
| 24 | have power to issue a permanent or temporary injunction or | ||||||
| 25 | restraining
order without bond to enforce the provisions of | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | this Act, and either party
to such suit shall have the right to | ||||||
| 2 | prosecute an appeal from the order or
judgment of the court.
| ||||||
| 3 | Any person, association, corporation, or others who | ||||||
| 4 | violate the
provisions of this Section shall be guilty of a | ||||||
| 5 | business offense and
punishable by a fine of not less than $500 | ||||||
| 6 | for each offense.
| ||||||
| 7 | (Source: P.A. 84-322.)
| ||||||
| 8 | (5 ILCS 312/6-102) (from Ch. 102, par. 206-102)
| ||||||
| 9 | Sec. 6-102. Notarial Acts. | ||||||
| 10 | (a) In taking an acknowledgment, the notary public must | ||||||
| 11 | determine,
either from personal knowledge or from satisfactory | ||||||
| 12 | evidence, that the
person appearing before the notary and | ||||||
| 13 | making the acknowledgment is the
person whose true signature is | ||||||
| 14 | on the instrument.
| ||||||
| 15 | (b) In taking a verification upon oath or affirmation, the | ||||||
| 16 | notary
public must determine, either from personal knowledge or | ||||||
| 17 | from satisfactory
evidence, that the person appearing before | ||||||
| 18 | the notary and making the
verification is the person whose true | ||||||
| 19 | signature is on the statement verified.
| ||||||
| 20 | (c) In witnessing or attesting a signature, the notary | ||||||
| 21 | public must
determine, either from personal knowledge or from | ||||||
| 22 | satisfactory evidence,
that the signature is that of the person | ||||||
| 23 | appearing before the notary and named therein.
| ||||||
| 24 | (d) A notary public has satisfactory evidence that a person | ||||||
| 25 | is the
person whose true signature is on a document if that | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | person:
| ||||||
| 2 | (1) is personally known to the notary;
| ||||||
| 3 | (2) is identified upon the oath or affirmation of a | ||||||
| 4 | credible witness
personally known to the notary; or
| ||||||
| 5 | (3) is identified on the basis of identification | ||||||
| 6 | documents. Identification documents are documents that are | ||||||
| 7 | valid at the time of the notarial act, issued by a state | ||||||
| 8 | agency, federal government agency, or consulate, and | ||||||
| 9 | bearing the photographic image of the individual's face and | ||||||
| 10 | signature of the individual.
| ||||||
| 11 | (e) A notary public or electronic notary public shall have | ||||||
| 12 | no obligation to perform any notarial or electronic notarial | ||||||
| 13 | act, and may refuse to perform a notarial or electronic | ||||||
| 14 | notarial act without further explanation. | ||||||
| 15 | (Source: P.A. 97-397, eff. 1-1-12; 98-29, eff. 6-21-13.)
| ||||||
| 16 | (5 ILCS 312/6-104) (from Ch. 102, par. 206-104)
| ||||||
| 17 | Sec. 6-104. Acts prohibited. | ||||||
| 18 | (a) A notary public shall not use any name or initial in | ||||||
| 19 | signing
certificates other than that by which the notary was | ||||||
| 20 | commissioned.
| ||||||
| 21 | (b) A notary public shall not acknowledge any instrument in | ||||||
| 22 | which the
notary's name appears as a party to the transaction.
| ||||||
| 23 | (c) A notary public shall not affix his signature to a | ||||||
| 24 | blank form of
affidavit or certificate of acknowledgment.
| ||||||
| 25 | (d) A notary public shall not take the acknowledgment of or | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | administer
an oath to any person whom the notary actually knows | ||||||
| 2 | to have been adjudged
mentally ill by a court of competent | ||||||
| 3 | jurisdiction and who has not been
restored to mental health as | ||||||
| 4 | a matter of record.
| ||||||
| 5 | (e) A notary public shall not take the acknowledgment of | ||||||
| 6 | any person who
is blind until the notary has read the | ||||||
| 7 | instrument to such person.
| ||||||
| 8 | (f) A notary public shall not take the acknowledgment of | ||||||
| 9 | any person who
does not speak or understand the English | ||||||
| 10 | language, unless the nature and
effect of the instrument to be | ||||||
| 11 | notarized is translated into a language
which the person does | ||||||
| 12 | understand.
| ||||||
| 13 | (g) A notary public shall not change anything in a written | ||||||
| 14 | instrument
after it has been signed by anyone.
| ||||||
| 15 | (h) No notary public shall be authorized to prepare any | ||||||
| 16 | legal
instrument, or fill in the blanks of an instrument, other | ||||||
| 17 | than a notary
certificate; however, this prohibition shall not | ||||||
| 18 | prohibit an attorney,
who is also a notary public, from | ||||||
| 19 | performing notarial acts for any document
prepared by that | ||||||
| 20 | attorney.
| ||||||
| 21 | (i) If a notary public accepts or receives any money from | ||||||
| 22 | any one to
whom an oath has been administered or on behalf of | ||||||
| 23 | whom an acknowledgment
has been taken for the purpose of | ||||||
| 24 | transmitting or forwarding such money to
another and willfully | ||||||
| 25 | fails to transmit or forward such money promptly, the
notary is | ||||||
| 26 | personally liable for any loss sustained because of such | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | failure.
The person or persons damaged by such failure may | ||||||
| 2 | bring an action to
recover damages, together with interest and | ||||||
| 3 | reasonable attorney fees,
against such notary public or his | ||||||
| 4 | bondsmen.
| ||||||
| 5 | (j) A notary public shall not perform any notarial act when | ||||||
| 6 | his or her commission is suspended or revoked, nor shall he or | ||||||
| 7 | she fail to comply with any term of suspension which may be | ||||||
| 8 | imposed for violation of this Section. | ||||||
| 9 | (k) No notary public shall be authorized to explain, | ||||||
| 10 | certify, or verify the contents of any document; however, this | ||||||
| 11 | prohibition shall not prohibit an attorney, who is also a | ||||||
| 12 | notary public, from performing notarial acts for any document | ||||||
| 13 | prepared by that attorney. | ||||||
| 14 | (l) A notary public shall not represent himself or herself | ||||||
| 15 | as an electronic notary public if the person has not been | ||||||
| 16 | commissioned as an electronic notary public by the Secretary of | ||||||
| 17 | State. | ||||||
| 18 | (m) No person shall knowingly create, manufacture, or | ||||||
| 19 | distribute software or hardware for the purpose of allowing a | ||||||
| 20 | person to act as an electronic notary public without being | ||||||
| 21 | commissioned in accordance with this Act. A violation of this | ||||||
| 22 | subsection (m) is a Class A misdemeanor. | ||||||
| 23 | (n) No person shall wrongfully obtain, conceal, damage, or | ||||||
| 24 | destroy the technology or device used to create the electronic | ||||||
| 25 | signature or seal of an electronic notary public. A violation | ||||||
| 26 | of this subsection (n) is a Class A misdemeanor. | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | (Source: P.A. 100-81, eff. 1-1-18; 100-809, eff. 1-1-19.)
| ||||||
| 2 | (5 ILCS 312/Art. VI-A heading new) | ||||||
| 3 | ARTICLE VI-A | ||||||
| 4 | ELECTRONIC NOTARIAL ACTS AND FORMS | ||||||
| 5 | (5 ILCS 312/6A-101 new) | ||||||
| 6 | Sec. 6A-101. Requirements for systems and providers of | ||||||
| 7 | electronic notarial technology. | ||||||
| 8 | (a) An electronic notarization system shall comply with | ||||||
| 9 | this Act and any rules adopted by the Secretary of State. | ||||||
| 10 | (b) An electronic notarization system requiring enrollment | ||||||
| 11 | shall enroll only persons commissioned as electronic notaries | ||||||
| 12 | public by the Secretary of State. | ||||||
| 13 | (c) An electronic notarization vendor shall take | ||||||
| 14 | reasonable steps to ensure that an electronic notary public who | ||||||
| 15 | has enrolled to use the system has the knowledge to use it to | ||||||
| 16 | perform electronic notarial acts in compliance with this Act. | ||||||
| 17 | (d) A provider of an electronic notarization system | ||||||
| 18 | requiring enrollment shall notify the Secretary of State of the | ||||||
| 19 | name of each electronic notary public who enrolls in the system | ||||||
| 20 | within 5 days after enrollment by means prescribed by rule by | ||||||
| 21 | the Secretary of State. | ||||||
| 22 | (e) An electronic notarization system shall require access | ||||||
| 23 | to the system by a password or other secure means of | ||||||
| 24 | authentication. | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | (f) An electronic notarization system shall enable an | ||||||
| 2 | electronic notary public to affix the electronic notary's | ||||||
| 3 | electronic signature in a manner that attributes such signature | ||||||
| 4 | to the electronic notary. | ||||||
| 5 | (g) An electronic notarization system shall render every | ||||||
| 6 | electronic notarial act tamper evident. | ||||||
| 7 | (h) An electronic notary public shall not use an electronic | ||||||
| 8 | notarization if: | ||||||
| 9 | (1) the electronic notary cannot competently operate | ||||||
| 10 | the electronic notarization system; or | ||||||
| 11 | (2) the electronic notary has a reasonable belief that | ||||||
| 12 | an electronic notarization system does not meet the | ||||||
| 13 | requirements set forth in this Act.
| ||||||
| 14 | (5 ILCS 312/6A-102 new) | ||||||
| 15 | Sec. 6A-102. Electronic notary not liable for system | ||||||
| 16 | failure. An electronic notary public who exercised reasonable | ||||||
| 17 | care enrolling in and using an electronic notarization system | ||||||
| 18 | shall not be liable for any damages resulting from the system's | ||||||
| 19 | failure to comply with the requirements of this Act. Any | ||||||
| 20 | provision in a contract or agreement between the electronic | ||||||
| 21 | notary public and provider that attempts to waive this immunity | ||||||
| 22 | shall be null, void, and of no effect.
| ||||||
| 23 | (5 ILCS 312/6A-103 new) | ||||||
| 24 | Sec. 6A-103. Electronic notarial acts. | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | (a) An electronic notary public: | ||||||
| 2 | (1) is a notary public for purposes of this Act and is | ||||||
| 3 | subject to all provisions of this Act; | ||||||
| 4 | (2) may perform notarial acts as provided by this Act | ||||||
| 5 | in addition to performing electronic notarizations; and | ||||||
| 6 | (3) may perform an electronic notarization authorized | ||||||
| 7 | under this Article. | ||||||
| 8 | (b) In performing an electronic notarization, an | ||||||
| 9 | electronic notary public shall verify the identity of a person | ||||||
| 10 | creating an electronic signature at the time that the signature | ||||||
| 11 | is taken by using two-way audio and video conference technology | ||||||
| 12 | that meets the requirements of this Act and rules adopted under | ||||||
| 13 | this Article. For the purposes of performing an electronic | ||||||
| 14 | notarial act for a person using audio-video communication, an | ||||||
| 15 | electronic notary public has satisfactory or documentary | ||||||
| 16 | evidence of the identity of the person if the electronic notary | ||||||
| 17 | public confirms the identity of the person by: | ||||||
| 18 | (1) the electronic notary public's personal knowledge | ||||||
| 19 | of the person creating the electronic signature; or | ||||||
| 20 | (2) each of the following: | ||||||
| 21 | (A) remote presentation by the person creating the | ||||||
| 22 | electronic signature of a government-issued | ||||||
| 23 | identification credential, including a passport or | ||||||
| 24 | driver's license, that contains the signature and a | ||||||
| 25 | photograph of the person; | ||||||
| 26 | (B) credential analysis of the front and back of | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | the government-issued identification credential and | ||||||
| 2 | the data thereon; and | ||||||
| 3 | (C) a dynamic knowledge-based authentication | ||||||
| 4 | assessment. | ||||||
| 5 | (c) An electronic notary public may perform any of the acts | ||||||
| 6 | set forth in Section 6-102 using audio-video communication in | ||||||
| 7 | accordance with this Section and any rules adopted by the | ||||||
| 8 | Secretary of State. | ||||||
| 9 | (d) If an electronic notarial act is performed using | ||||||
| 10 | audio-video communication: | ||||||
| 11 | (1) the technology must allow the persons | ||||||
| 12 | communicating to see and speak to each other | ||||||
| 13 | simultaneously; | ||||||
| 14 | (2) the signal transmission must be in real time; and | ||||||
| 15 | (3) the electronic notarial act must be recorded. | ||||||
| 16 | (e) The validity of the electronic notarial act will be | ||||||
| 17 | determined by applying the laws of the State of Illinois. | ||||||
| 18 | (f) The electronic notarial certificate for an electronic | ||||||
| 19 | notarization must include a notation that the notarization is | ||||||
| 20 | an electronic notarization. | ||||||
| 21 | (g) When performing an electronic notarization, an | ||||||
| 22 | electronic notary public shall complete an electronic notarial | ||||||
| 23 | certificate and attach or logically associate the electronic | ||||||
| 24 | notary's electronic signature and seal to that certificate in a | ||||||
| 25 | tamper evident manner. Evidence of tampering pursuant to this | ||||||
| 26 | standard may be used to determine whether the electronic | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | notarial act is valid or invalid. | ||||||
| 2 | (h) The liability, sanctions, and remedies for improper | ||||||
| 3 | performance of electronic notarial acts are the same as | ||||||
| 4 | described and provided by law for the improper performance of | ||||||
| 5 | non-electronic notarial acts as described under Section 7-108. | ||||||
| 6 | (i) Electronic notarial acts need to fulfill certain basic | ||||||
| 7 | requirements to ensure non-repudiation and the capability of | ||||||
| 8 | being authenticated by the Secretary of State for purposes of | ||||||
| 9 | issuing apostilles and certificates of authentication. The | ||||||
| 10 | requirements are as follows: | ||||||
| 11 | (1) the fact of the electronic notarial act, including | ||||||
| 12 | the electronic notary's identity, signature, and | ||||||
| 13 | electronic commission status, must be verifiable by the | ||||||
| 14 | Secretary of State; and | ||||||
| 15 | (2) the notarized electronic document will be rendered | ||||||
| 16 | ineligible for authentication by the Secretary of State if | ||||||
| 17 | it is improperly modified after the time of electronic | ||||||
| 18 | notarization, including any unauthorized alterations to | ||||||
| 19 | the document content, the electronic notarial certificate, | ||||||
| 20 | the electronic notary public's electronic signature, or | ||||||
| 21 | the electronic notary public's official electronic seal.
| ||||||
| 22 | (5 ILCS 312/6A-104 new) | ||||||
| 23 | Sec. 6A-104. Requirements for audio-video communication. | ||||||
| 24 | (a) An electronic notary public shall arrange for a | ||||||
| 25 | recording to be made of each electronic notarial act performed | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | using audio-video communication. The audio-video recording | ||||||
| 2 | required by this Section shall be in addition to the journal | ||||||
| 3 | entry for the electronic notarial act required by Section | ||||||
| 4 | 3-107. Before performing any electronic notarial act using | ||||||
| 5 | audio-video communication, the electronic notary public must | ||||||
| 6 | inform all participating persons that the electronic | ||||||
| 7 | notarization will be electronically recorded. | ||||||
| 8 | (b) If the person for whom the electronic notarial act is | ||||||
| 9 | being performed is identified by personal knowledge, the | ||||||
| 10 | recording of the electronic notarial act must include an | ||||||
| 11 | explanation by the electronic notary public as to how he or she | ||||||
| 12 | knows the person and how long he or she has known the person. | ||||||
| 13 | (c) If the person for whom the electronic notarial act is | ||||||
| 14 | being performed is identified by a credible witness: | ||||||
| 15 | (1) the credible witness must appear before the | ||||||
| 16 | electronic notary public; and | ||||||
| 17 | (2) the recording of the electronic notarial act must | ||||||
| 18 | include: | ||||||
| 19 | (A) a statement by the electronic notary public as | ||||||
| 20 | to whether he or she identified the credible witness by | ||||||
| 21 | personal knowledge or satisfactory evidence; and | ||||||
| 22 | (B) an explanation by the credible witness as to | ||||||
| 23 | how he or she knows the person for whom the electronic | ||||||
| 24 | notarial act is being performed and how long he or she | ||||||
| 25 | has known the person. | ||||||
| 26 | (d) An electronic notary public shall keep a recording made | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | pursuant to this Section for a period of not less than 7 years, | ||||||
| 2 | regardless of whether the electronic notarial act was actually | ||||||
| 3 | completed. | ||||||
| 4 | (e) An electronic notary public who performs an electronic | ||||||
| 5 | notarial act for a principal by means of audio-video | ||||||
| 6 | communication shall be located within the State of Illinois at | ||||||
| 7 | the time the electronic notarial act is performed. The | ||||||
| 8 | electronic notary public shall include a statement in the | ||||||
| 9 | electronic notarial certificate to indicate that the | ||||||
| 10 | electronic notarial act was performed by means of audio-video | ||||||
| 11 | communication. The statement may also be included in the | ||||||
| 12 | electronic notarial seal. | ||||||
| 13 | (f) The remote electronic notarization system used to | ||||||
| 14 | perform electronic notarial acts by means of audio-video | ||||||
| 15 | communication shall: | ||||||
| 16 | (1) provide sufficient audio clarity and video | ||||||
| 17 | resolution to enable the electronic notary public and the | ||||||
| 18 | principal to see and speak to each other simultaneously | ||||||
| 19 | through live, real time transmission; | ||||||
| 20 | (2) include a means of authentication that reasonably | ||||||
| 21 | ensures only the proper parties have access to the | ||||||
| 22 | audio-video communication; | ||||||
| 23 | (3) provide some manner of ensuring that the electronic | ||||||
| 24 | record that is presented for electronic notarization is the | ||||||
| 25 | same record electronically signed by the principal; | ||||||
| 26 | (4) enable the electronic notary public to verify the | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | identity of the principal through multiple identity | ||||||
| 2 | verification methods, which may include: (i) completion of | ||||||
| 3 | a dynamic knowledge-based authentication assessment; (ii) | ||||||
| 4 | credential analysis of a remotely presented | ||||||
| 5 | government-issued identification that contains the | ||||||
| 6 | signature and a photograph of the principal; (iii) a valid | ||||||
| 7 | public key certificate; or (iv) any other identity proofing | ||||||
| 8 | method adopted by the commissioning official; | ||||||
| 9 | (5) be capable of creating, storing, and accessing an | ||||||
| 10 | electronic recording of the audio-video communication; and | ||||||
| 11 | (6) provide reasonable security measures to prevent | ||||||
| 12 | unauthorized access to: (i) the live transmission of the | ||||||
| 13 | audio-video communication; (ii) a recording of the | ||||||
| 14 | audio-video communication; (iii) the verification methods | ||||||
| 15 | and credentials used to verify the identity of the | ||||||
| 16 | principal; and (iv) the electronic documents presented for | ||||||
| 17 | electronic notarization. | ||||||
| 18 | (g) An electronic notary public who performs an electronic | ||||||
| 19 | notarial act for a principal by means of audio-video | ||||||
| 20 | communication shall: | ||||||
| 21 | (1) be located within this State at the time the | ||||||
| 22 | electronic notarial act is performed; | ||||||
| 23 | (2) execute the electronic notarial act in a single | ||||||
| 24 | recorded session that complies with Section 6A-103; | ||||||
| 25 | (3) be satisfied that any electronic record that is | ||||||
| 26 | electronically signed, acknowledged, or otherwise | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | presented for electronic notarization by the principal is | ||||||
| 2 | the same record electronically signed by the electronic | ||||||
| 3 | notary; | ||||||
| 4 | (4) be satisfied that the quality of the audio-video | ||||||
| 5 | communication is sufficient to make the determinations | ||||||
| 6 | required for the electronic notarial act under this Act and | ||||||
| 7 | any other law of this State; and | ||||||
| 8 | (5) identify the venue for the electronic notarial act | ||||||
| 9 | as the jurisdiction within Illinois where the notary is | ||||||
| 10 | physically located while performing the act. | ||||||
| 11 | (h) An electronic notarization system used to perform | ||||||
| 12 | electronic notarial acts by means of audio-video communication | ||||||
| 13 | shall: | ||||||
| 14 | (1) require the electronic notary public, the | ||||||
| 15 | principal, and any required witness to access the system | ||||||
| 16 | through an authentication procedure that is reasonably | ||||||
| 17 | secure from unauthorized access; | ||||||
| 18 | (2) enable the electronic notary public to verify the | ||||||
| 19 | identity of the principal and any required witness by means | ||||||
| 20 | of personal knowledge or satisfactory evidence of identity | ||||||
| 21 | in compliance with Section 6-102; | ||||||
| 22 | (3) provide reasonable certainty that the electronic | ||||||
| 23 | notary public, principal, and any required witness are | ||||||
| 24 | viewing the same electronic record and that all signatures, | ||||||
| 25 | changes, and attachments to the electronic record are made | ||||||
| 26 | in real time; and | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | (4) be capable of creating, archiving, and protecting | ||||||
| 2 | the audio-video recording, and capable of providing public | ||||||
| 3 | and official access, inspection, and copying of this | ||||||
| 4 | recording as required by this Act. | ||||||
| 5 | (i) The audio-video recording shall include: | ||||||
| 6 | (1) at the commencement of the recording, a recitation | ||||||
| 7 | by the electronic notary public of information sufficient | ||||||
| 8 | to identify the electronic notarial act; | ||||||
| 9 | (2) a declaration by the principal that the principal's | ||||||
| 10 | electronic signature on the record was knowingly and | ||||||
| 11 | voluntarily made; | ||||||
| 12 | (3) all actions and spoken words of the principal, | ||||||
| 13 | notary public, and any required witness during the entire | ||||||
| 14 | electronic notarial act; and | ||||||
| 15 | (4) at the discretion of the principal, an accurate and | ||||||
| 16 | complete image of the entire electronic record that was | ||||||
| 17 | viewed and electronically signed by the principal and the | ||||||
| 18 | electronic notary public. | ||||||
| 19 | (j) The provisions of Section 3-107 related respectively to | ||||||
| 20 | security, inspection, copying, and disposition of the journal | ||||||
| 21 | shall also apply to security, inspection, copying, and | ||||||
| 22 | disposition of audio-video recordings required by this | ||||||
| 23 | Section.
| ||||||
| 24 | (5 ILCS 312/6A-105 new) | ||||||
| 25 | Sec. 6A-105. Electronic certificate of notarial acts. | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | (a) An electronic notarial act must be evidenced by an | ||||||
| 2 | electronic notarial certificate signed and dated by the | ||||||
| 3 | electronic notary public. The electronic notarial certificate | ||||||
| 4 | must include identification of the jurisdiction in which the | ||||||
| 5 | electronic notarial act is performed and the electronic seal of | ||||||
| 6 | the electronic notary public. | ||||||
| 7 | (b) An electronic notarial certificate of an electronic | ||||||
| 8 | notarial act is sufficient if it meets the requirements of | ||||||
| 9 | subsection (a) and it: | ||||||
| 10 | (1) is in the short form set forth in 6-105; | ||||||
| 11 | (2) is in a form otherwise prescribed by the law of | ||||||
| 12 | this State; or | ||||||
| 13 | (3) sets forth the actions of the electronic notary | ||||||
| 14 | public and those are sufficient to meet the requirements of | ||||||
| 15 | the designated electronic notarial act. | ||||||
| 16 | (c) At the time of an electronic notarial act, an | ||||||
| 17 | electronic notary public shall officially sign every | ||||||
| 18 | electronic notarial certificate and electronically affix the | ||||||
| 19 | electronic seal clearly and legibly, so that it is capable of | ||||||
| 20 | photographic reproduction. The illegibility of any of the | ||||||
| 21 | information required under this Section does not affect the | ||||||
| 22 | validity of a transaction.
| ||||||
| 23 | (5 ILCS 312/6A-106 new) | ||||||
| 24 | Sec. 6A-106. Electronic acknowledgments; physical | ||||||
| 25 | presence. | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | (a) For purposes of this Act, a person may appear before | ||||||
| 2 | the person taking the acknowledgment by: | ||||||
| 3 | (1) being in the same physical location as the other | ||||||
| 4 | person and close enough to see, hear, communicate with, and | ||||||
| 5 | exchange tangible identification credentials with that | ||||||
| 6 | person; or | ||||||
| 7 | (2) being outside the physical presence of the other | ||||||
| 8 | person, but interacting with the other person by means of | ||||||
| 9 | communication technology. | ||||||
| 10 | (b) If the acknowledging person is outside the physical | ||||||
| 11 | presence of the person taking the acknowledgment, the | ||||||
| 12 | certification of acknowledgment must indicate that the | ||||||
| 13 | notarial act was performed by means of communication | ||||||
| 14 | technology. A form of certificate of acknowledgment as provided | ||||||
| 15 | by the Secretary of State, which may include the use of a | ||||||
| 16 | remote online notarial certificate, is sufficient for purposes | ||||||
| 17 | of this subsection (b) if it substantially reads as follows: | ||||||
| 18 | "The foregoing instrument was acknowledged before me by means | ||||||
| 19 | of communication technology this (date) by...(each form | ||||||
| 20 | continued as sufficient for its respective purposes.)".
| ||||||
| 21 | (5 ILCS 312/7-106) (from Ch. 102, par. 207-106)
| ||||||
| 22 | Sec. 7-106. Willful Impersonation. | ||||||
| 23 | (a) Any person who acts as, or otherwise willfully | ||||||
| 24 | impersonates, a notary
public while not lawfully appointed and | ||||||
| 25 | commissioned to perform notarial
acts is guilty of a Class A | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | misdemeanor.
| ||||||
| 2 | (b) Any notary public or other person who is not an | ||||||
| 3 | electronic notary public that impersonates an electronic | ||||||
| 4 | notary public to perform electronic notarial acts is guilty of | ||||||
| 5 | a Class A misdemeanor. | ||||||
| 6 | (Source: P.A. 84-322.)
| ||||||
| 7 | (5 ILCS 312/7-107) (from Ch. 102, par. 207-107)
| ||||||
| 8 | Sec. 7-107. Wrongful Possession. | ||||||
| 9 | (a) No person may unlawfully possess, obtain, conceal, | ||||||
| 10 | damage, or destroy a notary's official seal. Any person who | ||||||
| 11 | unlawfully possesses a notary's official seal is guilty of
a | ||||||
| 12 | misdemeanor and punishable upon conviction by a fine not | ||||||
| 13 | exceeding $1,000.
| ||||||
| 14 | (b) No person may unlawfully possess, conceal, damage, or | ||||||
| 15 | destroy the certificate, disk, coding, card, program, | ||||||
| 16 | software, or hardware enabling an electronic notary public to | ||||||
| 17 | affix an official electronic signature or seal. | ||||||
| 18 | (c) Any person who violates this Section shall be guilty of | ||||||
| 19 | a misdemeanor and punishable upon conviction by a fine not | ||||||
| 20 | exceeding $1,000. | ||||||
| 21 | (Source: P.A. 84-322.)
| ||||||
| 22 | (5 ILCS 312/7-108) (from Ch. 102, par. 207-108)
| ||||||
| 23 | Sec. 7-108. Reprimand, suspension, and revocation of | ||||||
| 24 | commission. | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | (a) The Secretary of State may revoke the commission of any | ||||||
| 2 | notary public who,
during the current term of appointment:
| ||||||
| 3 | (1) submits an application for commission and | ||||||
| 4 | appointment as a notary
public which contains substantial | ||||||
| 5 | and material misstatement or omission of fact; or
| ||||||
| 6 | (2) is convicted of any felony, misdemeanors, | ||||||
| 7 | including those defined in Part C, Articles 16, 17, 18, 19, | ||||||
| 8 | and 21, and Part E, Articles 31, 32, and 33 of the Criminal | ||||||
| 9 | Code of 2012, or official misconduct under this Act; or .
| ||||||
| 10 | (3) is a licensed attorney and has been sanctioned, | ||||||
| 11 | suspended, or disbarred by the Illinois Attorney | ||||||
| 12 | Registration and Disciplinary Commission. | ||||||
| 13 | (b) Whenever the Secretary of State believes that a | ||||||
| 14 | violation of this Article has occurred, he or she may | ||||||
| 15 | investigate any such violation. The Secretary may also | ||||||
| 16 | investigate possible violations of this Article upon a signed | ||||||
| 17 | written complaint on a form designated by the Secretary. | ||||||
| 18 | (c) A notary's failure to cooperate or respond to an | ||||||
| 19 | investigation by the Secretary of State is a failure by the | ||||||
| 20 | notary to fully and faithfully discharge the responsibilities | ||||||
| 21 | and duties of a notary and shall result in suspension or | ||||||
| 22 | revocation of the notary's commission or the electronic | ||||||
| 23 | notary's commission. | ||||||
| 24 | (d) All written complaints which on their face appear to | ||||||
| 25 | establish facts which, if proven true, would constitute an act | ||||||
| 26 | of misrepresentation or fraud in notarization or electronic | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | notarization, or misrepresentation or fraud on the part of the | ||||||
| 2 | notary, shall be investigated by the Secretary of State to | ||||||
| 3 | determine whether cause exists to reprimand, suspend, or revoke | ||||||
| 4 | the commission of the notary. | ||||||
| 5 | (e) The Secretary of State may deliver a written official | ||||||
| 6 | warning and reprimand to a notary, or may revoke or suspend a | ||||||
| 7 | notary's commission or an electronic notary's commission, for | ||||||
| 8 | any of the following: | ||||||
| 9 | (1) a notary's official misconduct, as defined under | ||||||
| 10 | Section 7-104; | ||||||
| 11 | (2) any ground for which an application for appointment | ||||||
| 12 | as a notary may be denied for failure to complete | ||||||
| 13 | application requirements as provided under Section 2-102; | ||||||
| 14 | (3) any prohibited act provided under Section 6-104; or | ||||||
| 15 | (4) a violation of any provision of the general | ||||||
| 16 | statutes. | ||||||
| 17 | (f) After investigation and upon a determination by the | ||||||
| 18 | Secretary of State that one or more prohibited acts have been | ||||||
| 19 | performed in the notarization or electronic notarization of a | ||||||
| 20 | document, the Secretary shall, after considering the extent of | ||||||
| 21 | the prohibited act and the degree of culpability of the notary, | ||||||
| 22 | order one or more of the following courses of action: | ||||||
| 23 | (1) issue a letter of warning to the notary, including | ||||||
| 24 | the Secretary's findings; | ||||||
| 25 | (2) order suspension of the commission of the notary | ||||||
| 26 | for a period of time designated by the Secretary; | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | (3) order revocation of the commission of the notary; | ||||||
| 2 | (4) refer the allegations to the appropriate State's | ||||||
| 3 | Attorney's Office or the Attorney General for criminal | ||||||
| 4 | investigation; or | ||||||
| 5 | (5) refer the allegations to the Illinois Attorney | ||||||
| 6 | Registration and Disciplinary Commission for disciplinary | ||||||
| 7 | proceedings. | ||||||
| 8 | (g) After a notary receives notice from the Secretary of | ||||||
| 9 | State that his or her commission has been revoked, that notary | ||||||
| 10 | shall immediately deliver his or her official seal to the | ||||||
| 11 | Secretary. After an electronic notary public receives notice | ||||||
| 12 | from the Secretary of State that his or her electronic | ||||||
| 13 | commission has been revoked, the electronic notary public shall | ||||||
| 14 | immediately notify the electronic notary's chosen technology | ||||||
| 15 | provider, and to the extent possible, destroy or remove the | ||||||
| 16 | software used for electronic notarizations. | ||||||
| 17 | (h) A notary whose appointment has been revoked due to a | ||||||
| 18 | violation of this Act shall not be eligible for a new | ||||||
| 19 | commission as a notary public in this State for a period of at | ||||||
| 20 | least 5 years from the date of the final revocation. | ||||||
| 21 | (i) A notary may voluntarily resign from appointment by | ||||||
| 22 | notifying the Secretary of State in writing of his or her | ||||||
| 23 | intention to do so, and by physically returning his or her | ||||||
| 24 | stamp to the Secretary. An electronic notary public may | ||||||
| 25 | voluntarily resign from appointment by notifying the Secretary | ||||||
| 26 | of State in writing of his or her intention to do so, and by | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | notifying the electronic notary's chosen technology provider, | ||||||
| 2 | and to the extent possible, destroy or remove the software used | ||||||
| 3 | for electronic notarizations. A voluntary resignation shall | ||||||
| 4 | not stop or preclude any investigation into a notary's conduct, | ||||||
| 5 | or prevent further suspension or revocation by the Secretary, | ||||||
| 6 | who may pursue any such investigation to a conclusion and issue | ||||||
| 7 | any finding. | ||||||
| 8 | (j) Upon a determination by a sworn law enforcement officer | ||||||
| 9 | that the allegations raised by the complaint are founded, and | ||||||
| 10 | the notary has received notice of suspension or revocation from | ||||||
| 11 | the Secretary of State, the notary is entitled to an | ||||||
| 12 | administrative hearing. | ||||||
| 13 | (k) The Secretary of State shall adopt administrative | ||||||
| 14 | hearing rules applicable to this Section that are consistent | ||||||
| 15 | with the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act. | ||||||
| 16 | (l) Any revocation, resignation, expiration, or suspension | ||||||
| 17 | of the commission of a notary public terminates or suspends any | ||||||
| 18 | commission to notarize electronically. | ||||||
| 19 | (m) A notary public may terminate registration to notarize | ||||||
| 20 | electronically and maintain his or her underlying notary public | ||||||
| 21 | commission. | ||||||
| 22 | (Source: P.A. 100-809, eff. 1-1-19; 101-81, eff. 7-12-19.)
| ||||||
| 23 | (5 ILCS 312/7-110 new) | ||||||
| 24 | Sec. 7-110. Applicable law; conflict of law. | ||||||
| 25 | (a) The validity of any notarization, including an | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | electronic notarization, shall be determined by applying the | ||||||
| 2 | laws of this State, regardless of the physical location of the | ||||||
| 3 | principal at the time of a remote notarization. | ||||||
| 4 | (b) An electronic notary public authorized to perform | ||||||
| 5 | electronic notarizations is subject to and must comply with | ||||||
| 6 | this Act. | ||||||
| 7 | (c) If a conflict between a provision of this Section and | ||||||
| 8 | another law of this State, this Section controls.
| ||||||
| 9 | Section 10. The State Finance Act is amended by adding | ||||||
| 10 | Section 5.930 as follows:
| ||||||
| 11 | (30 ILCS 105/5.930 new) | ||||||
| 12 | Sec. 5.930. The Electronic Notarization Fund.
| ||||||
| 13 | Section 15. The Uniform Real Property Electronic Recording | ||||||
| 14 | Act is amended by changing Section 2 and by adding Section 3.5 | ||||||
| 15 | as follows:
| ||||||
| 16 | (765 ILCS 33/2)
| ||||||
| 17 | Sec. 2. Definitions. In this Act: | ||||||
| 18 | (1) "Document" means information that is: | ||||||
| 19 | (A) inscribed on a tangible medium or that is | ||||||
| 20 | stored in an electronic or other medium and is | ||||||
| 21 | retrievable in perceivable form; and | ||||||
| 22 | (B) eligible to be recorded in the land records | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | maintained by the county recorder.
| ||||||
| 2 | (2) "Electronic" means relating to technology having | ||||||
| 3 | electrical, digital, magnetic, wireless, optical, | ||||||
| 4 | electromagnetic, or similar capabilities. | ||||||
| 5 | (3) "Electronic document" means a document created, | ||||||
| 6 | generated, sent, communicated, received, or stored by | ||||||
| 7 | electronic means that is received by the recorder in an | ||||||
| 8 | electronic form. | ||||||
| 9 | (4) "Electronic signature" means an electronic sound, | ||||||
| 10 | symbol, or process attached to or logically associated with | ||||||
| 11 | a document and executed or adopted by a person with the | ||||||
| 12 | intent to sign the document. | ||||||
| 13 | (5) "Person" means an individual, corporation, | ||||||
| 14 | business trust, estate, trust, partnership, limited | ||||||
| 15 | liability company, association, joint venture, public | ||||||
| 16 | corporation, government, or governmental subdivision, | ||||||
| 17 | agency, or instrumentality, or any other legal or | ||||||
| 18 | commercial entity. | ||||||
| 19 | (6) "State" means a state of the United States, the | ||||||
| 20 | District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin | ||||||
| 21 | Islands, or any territory or insular possession subject to | ||||||
| 22 | the jurisdiction of the United States. | ||||||
| 23 | (7) "Secretary" means the Secretary of State. | ||||||
| 24 | (8) "Commission" means the Illinois Electronic | ||||||
| 25 | Recording Commission. | ||||||
| 26 | Any notifications required by this Act must be made in | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | writing and may be communicated by certified mail, return | ||||||
| 2 | receipt requested or electronic mail so long as receipt is | ||||||
| 3 | verified.
| ||||||
| 4 | (Source: P.A. 95-472, eff. 8-27-07.)
| ||||||
| 5 | (765 ILCS 33/3.5 new) | ||||||
| 6 | Sec. 3.5. Electronic documents certified by notary public. | ||||||
| 7 | (a) A paper or tangible copy of an electronic document that | ||||||
| 8 | a notary public has certified to be a true and correct copy | ||||||
| 9 | under subsection (b) satisfies any requirement of law that, as | ||||||
| 10 | a condition for recording, the document: | ||||||
| 11 | (1) be an original or be in writing; | ||||||
| 12 | (2) be signed or contain an original signature, if the | ||||||
| 13 | document contains an electronic signature of the person | ||||||
| 14 | required to sign the document; and | ||||||
| 15 | (3) be notarized, acknowledged, verified, witnessed, | ||||||
| 16 | or made under oath, if the document contains an electronic | ||||||
| 17 | signature of the person authorized to perform that act, and | ||||||
| 18 | all other information required to be included. | ||||||
| 19 | (b) A notary public duly appointed and commissioned under | ||||||
| 20 | Section 2-101 of the Illinois Notary Public Act may certify | ||||||
| 21 | that a paper or tangible copy of an electronic document is a | ||||||
| 22 | true and correct copy of the electronic document if the notary | ||||||
| 23 | public has: | ||||||
| 24 | (1) reasonably confirmed that the electronic document | ||||||
| 25 | is in a tamper evident format; | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | (2) detected no changes or errors in any electronic | ||||||
| 2 | signature or other information in the electronic document; | ||||||
| 3 | (3) personally printed or supervised the printing of | ||||||
| 4 | the electronic document onto paper or other tangible | ||||||
| 5 | medium; or | ||||||
| 6 | (4) not made any changes or modifications to the | ||||||
| 7 | electronic document or to the paper or tangible copy | ||||||
| 8 | thereof other than the certification described in this | ||||||
| 9 | subsection (b). | ||||||
| 10 | (c) A county recorder shall accept for recording a paper or | ||||||
| 11 | tangible copy of a document that has been certified by a notary | ||||||
| 12 | public to be a true and correct copy of an electronic document | ||||||
| 13 | under subsection (b) as evidenced by a notarial certificate. | ||||||
| 14 | (d) A notarial certificate in substantially the following | ||||||
| 15 | form is sufficient for the purposes of this Section:
| ||||||
| 16 | "State of....................................................
| ||||||
| 17 | County of....................................................
| ||||||
| 18 | On this.....(date), I certify that the foregoing and annexed | ||||||
| 19 | document [entitled............,] (and) containing | ||||||
| 20 | ............pages is a true and correct copy of an electronic document | ||||||
| 21 | printed by me or under my supervision. I further certify that, | ||||||
| 22 | at the time of printing, no security features present on the | ||||||
| 23 | electronic document indicated any changes or errors in an | ||||||
| |||||||
| |||||||
| 1 | electronic signature or other information in the electronic | ||||||
| 2 | document since its creation or execution.
| ||||||
| 3 | ............................................................. | ||||||
| 4 | (Signature of Notary Public) | ||||||
| 5 | (Seal)" | ||||||
| 6 | (f) If a notarial certificate is attached to or made a part | ||||||
| 7 | of a paper or tangible document, the certificate is prima facie | ||||||
| 8 | evidence that the requirements of subsection (c) have been | ||||||
| 9 | satisfied with respect to the document. | ||||||
| 10 | (g) A paper or tangible copy of a deed, mortgage, or other | ||||||
| 11 | document shall be deemed, from the time of being filed for | ||||||
| 12 | record, as notice to subsequent purchasers and creditors, | ||||||
| 13 | though it may not be certified in accordance with the | ||||||
| 14 | provisions of this Section. | ||||||
| 15 | (h) This Section does not apply to any map or plat governed | ||||||
| 16 | by the Plat Act, the Judicial Plat Act, or the Permanent Survey | ||||||
| 17 | Act, or to any monument record governed by the Land Survey | ||||||
| 18 | Monuments Act.
| ||||||
| 19 | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect on the | ||||||
| 20 | later of the following:
| ||||||
| 21 | (1) January 1, 2021; or
| ||||||
| 22 | (2) the date on which the Office of the Secretary of | ||||||
| 23 | State files with the Index Department of the Office of the | ||||||
| 24 | Secretary of State a notice that the Office of the | ||||||
| 25 | Secretary of State has adopted the rules necessary to | ||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1 | implement this Act. Upon the filing of the notice, the | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2 | Index Department shall provide a copy of the notice to the | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 3 | Legislative Reference Bureau.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||