With less than a week to go until London’s Sky Ride members of our notary office are busy preparing to take part in this wonderful celebrations in London’s calendar.

The London Sky Ride is a fantastic day where members of the public can cycle through a “traffic fee” London.  People wanting to take part in the ride can still register by going to www.goskyride.com. The Skyride is on Sunday 4th September. It is free and open to every member of London’s community who wish to explore the City of London on bike.

London is a key part of the Sky Ride campaign, which is a strategy to get one million people riding a bike by 2013. The event has attracted a great deal of publicity, not least for the active involement of Mayor of London, Boris Johnson and Kelly Brooke as a Sky Ride Ambassador.

Matthew Pryke explains “The London Sky Ride really is a fantastic day out for all the family.  Being able to cycle through London and enjoy this wonderful city from the comfort of your bike is an experience not to be missed.  Members of our Notary offices in London will be supporting this great event and welcome the Mayor of London’s promotion and support for this event and cycling as London’s long term transport solution.”

For further details of the London Sky Ride and the notary services of M D Pryke Notary Public please refer to the website www.mdpryke-notary.com.

As a Notary Public in London I am often asked how someone may qualify as  a Notary.  I hope this brief article will shed some light on the process.

There are slightly in excess of 900 Notaries Public in England and Wales, and approximately 30 who are a Notary Public in London.

The overwhelming majority of Notaries Public are qualified solicitors or legal practitioners.  A Notary Public in London, or elsewhere in England and Wales for that matter, must first complete the Postgraduate Diploma in Notarial Practice.

To the best of our knowledge, the only place offering such a Notary diploma is Cambridge University.  The course is conducted as distance learning via the internet and with group teaching sessions at Madingley Hall in Cambridge.  It lasts for a two year period, and is open to solicitors and barristers in general private practice, and to those with a recent qualifying law degree and Legal Practice Certificate.  All Applicants should hold an up to date and complete Certificate of Exemption obtainable from the Faculty Office of the Archbishop of Canterbury.

There are three core subject areas to study.  The area is Roman law, which is covered in year one, along with Private International Law.

Notarial Practice forms the basis for the second year of study.

There are written assignments of 2,000 words for both Roman Law and Private International Law, followed by an examination, and three assignments for the Notarial practice course of 3,000 words each.

The final assessment stage to become a Notary Public is a two hour written exam held in Cambridge.

For further details on how to become a UK Notary Public in London or elsewhere, please contact Matthew Pryke through the usual channels.

A Deed Poll is a document used for legally changing name.  Whatever the reason for a name change (changing a surname after divorce for example, or changing a first name) it can be completed free of charge by using an MD Pryke Notary Public LLP Deed Poll form as laid out below.

A Deed Poll is a term with which most people are familiar.  If they are intent on a new name people believe they must visit a Solicitor or a Notary Public to change name legally by Deed Poll.  A legal name change, however, is a simple process and can be completed free of charge in three easy steps.

Free name change step 1.

Download a free Deed Poll here

Free name change step 2.

Simply open the Deed Poll thumbnail and follow the instructions written in red.  You must delete the red writing and replace it as per the Deed Poll instructions.

Free name change step 3.

Once you have filled in the Deed poll, you must sign it and get it witnessed by an independent third party as per the instructions on the Deed Poll.

Once your Deed Poll is filled out correctly, you have now changed your name by Deed Poll.

Your name change is now 100% legal – KEEP THE DOCUMENT IN A SAFE PLACE!

Should anyone question your new name, this completed Deed Poll certificate will verify your change of identity.  To change your name on a Passport, government document, etc, you will need to present either your original Deed Poll or an official certified copy.

For further information on our free legal name change Deed Poll, or on any of our Notary Public Services please contact Matthew on 0207 6364422.

Notaries Public practising in the UK are obliged to use a Notary stamp to authenticate documents.  UK Notaries Public must use a steel Notary stamp that is unique to their Notarial Practice, unlike their US counterparts who use a rubber Notary Stamp, similar to those used by Banks and Building Societies.

At MD Pryke Notary Public LLP we use a steel Notary stamp as pictured below

Notary Stamp used by London Notary Public, Matthew Pryke

Which creates a Notary stamp imprint as follows

UK Notary seal, example of...

For more information on UK Notary stamps, please contact M D Pryke Notary Public LLP  through the usual channels.

UK Notaries Public – How they differ from US Notaries – Part 3

This is the third article in a series that details the differing notarial procedures in the United Kingdom compared to US Notary practices.

Article 1 dealt with: The professional status of Notaries Public, The qualifications required to practice as a Notary, and the US concept of a ‘commission‘.

Article 2 highlighted: Notarial duty of care, Legal protection and insurance for Notaries, and Notary fees

7. Identity verification required by UK Notaries

A Notary practicing in the United States is not required to take measures to corroborate either the identity or the authority of their notarial clients.  Further, when witnessing a signature or notarizing a document, US Notaries only require one item of identification.

A UK Notary must identify the individual with two forms of identification, both of which must comply with UK money laundering regulations.  A British Notary must also determine whether the intended signatory possesses the requisite authority to sign.  For example when a Director signs either for themselves or on behalf of a company, the Notary must ascertain their mandate for so doing.

Furthermore, a Notary is required to ensure that the document is executed in a manner required by the laws of England and Wales (e.g. power of attorney being signed in the presence of a witness as a deed)

8. Notarisation process

US notaries generally notarise a document with a rubber Notary stamp similar to those used by a bank or post office.

UK notaries use a steel stamp unique to their notarial practice.  See below for the official MD Pryke Notary Public seal:

Furthermore, most UK notaries will rivet the notarized document and tie with ribbon to ensure that it is secure.  This procedure ensures that no pages can be added or removed after notarization.

For more details on the different working practices between a UK Notary and their US equivalents please refer to other articles in this series, or else contact us via telephone, post or email.