The unauthorized practice of law
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The words
A non-attorney notary may not: give legal advice or draw legal papers; solicit legal business for a lawyer for pay; split fees with a lawyer; or advertise powers the law does not give. Practicing law without a license is a misdemeanor.
The actual law, so it can’t scare you later.
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Actually means
You witness and certify. You never draft, advise, or explain what a clause means for someone.
Plain English. No legalese survives this step.
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Live example
A customer asks you to fill in the substance of a power-of-attorney form. Drawing the legal content is off limits; notarizing her completed form is your job.
A scene you can picture.
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Killer question
Wills, twice: drawing one is prohibited, and the booklet warns never to take an acknowledgment of a will. Any will scenario: refuse, send to a lawyer.
Exactly how the exam asks it.