Glossary

Acknowledgement

A formal declaration in the form prescribed by the law of the country receiving the document, made before a Notary Public by the person who executed the document that it was executed with full understanding, capacity and free will.

Affidavit

A written declaration of fact sworn and made under Oath before a Public Notary or Commissioner for Oaths.

Affirmation

A written solemn declaration, as in swearing an Affidavit, but declared to be true, not under Oath (used for those preferring not to Swear by God as to the truth of the contents of the written declaration).

An affirmation has exactly the same legal effect as an oath, but is usually taken to avoid the religious implications of an Oath.

Apostille

See the apostille page.

Hague Convention

As above.

FCO

Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Legalisation; Legalise.

See the legalisation page.

Notary Public; Notary; Public Notary

A notary public (or notary or public notary) is a legal professional and public officer constituted by law to serve the public in non-contentious matters usually concerned with estates, deeds, powers-of-attorney, and foreign and international business.

A notary’s main functions are to administer oaths and affirmations, take affidavits and statutory declarations, witness and authenticate the execution of certain classes of documents, take acknowledgments of deeds and other conveyances, protest notes and bills of exchange, provide notice of foreign drafts, prepare marine or ship’s protests in cases of damage, provide exemplifications and notarial copies. Any such act is known as a notarisation.

Consularisation (Consularization)

The act of authenticating any legal document by the consular office of the relevant Consulate or Embassy, by the consul signing and affixing its seal or stamp to the document.

This is part of the process of Legalisation.

Notarisation (Notarization), Notary Seal

See the notarisation page.

Notarial Certificate; Notarial Acts; Notarial Deeds

A Notary Public affixes a notarial certificate to the document which confirms the execution or validity of the document.

A Notary Public may also draft legal instruments known as notarial acts or deeds which may have probative value and executory force.

Notarial Certificates and Notarial Acts may be filed in the Notarys’ register or protocol (or summary details kept).

Notarial Register; Notary Protocol

The register of notarial acts performed by the Notary Public.

POA

Power of Attorney

Proxy

See Power of Attorney

Power of Attorney

A written authorization to represent or act on another’s behalf in private affairs, business, or some other legal matter. The person authorising the other to act is the principal, grantor, or donor (of the power), and the one authorised to act is the donee, or attorney.

Deed

A written legal instrument which passes, or affirms or confirms something which passes, an interest, right or property and that is signed, witnessed and delivered.

Also known as an instrument in solemn form, is the most formal type of private instrument requiring not only the maker of the deed (grantor, transferor) but also attesting witnesses.

A deed (unlike a simple contract) is enforceable without consideration (money or money’s worth).

Contract

An agreement entered into by two parties or more with the intention of creating a legal obligation, where valuable consideration has passed between the parties.

Trade Mark

Trade marks are signs (like words and logos) that distinguish goods and services in the marketplace.

Assignment

A legal instrument which transfers the rights of one person (assignor) to another person (assignee).

Patent

Patents protect the methods and processes that make things work.   Frequently used to protect the intellectual property of an invention.

Intellectual Property

Refers to creations of the mind: inventions, literary and artistic works, and symbols, names, images, and designs used in commerce.

Divided into two categories:  Industrial property, which includes inventions (patents), trademarks, industrial designs, and geographic indications of source; and Copyright, which includes literary and artistic works such as novels, poems and plays, films, musical works, artistic works.

OJEU

Official Journal of the European Union

WTO

World Trade Organisation

EU

The European Union

Faculty Office

www.facultyoffice.org.uk – The Faculty Office has its origins in the Ecclesiastical Licences Act 1533. This Act transferred to the Archbishop of Canterbury.  Today the Faculty Office is presided over by the Master of the Faculties and its day to day administration is the responsibility of the Registrar.

The functions of the Faculty Office are now threefold: the issue of marriage licences, the regulation of the notarial profession and the awarding by the Archbishop of “Lambeth” Degrees.

Notaries Society

www.thenotariessociety.org.uk

The Notaries Society is the representative society for the 900 or so Notaries Public practising in England and Wales.

Indian High Commission

www.hcilondon.in

The Indian High Commission is the diplomatic mission of the Indian government to the UK.  It’s seat is India House, Aldwych, London.

ABCC

Arab British Chamber of Commerce

BCC

British Chamber of Commerce

Embassy

A permanent diplomatic mission (or delegation of government representative of one country in another) is typically known as an embassy, and the person in charge of the mission is known as the Ambassador.

Missions between Commonwealth countries are known as High Commissions and their heads are High Commissioners.  This is because ambassadors are exchanged between foreign countries, but since the beginning of the Commonwealth, member countries have nominally maintained that they are not foreign to one another (the same reason as the naming of the FCO).

Consulate

Similar to a diplomatic office but not the same as a High Commission or Embassy. It has its focus on dealing with individuals and businesses. The Vienna convention on Consular Relations set out the role of consulates.  The person in charge of a Consulate is the Consul or Consulate-General.   The department most often associated with notary publics’ is the Consular Section.

Consulate Section

See Consulate

Authentication

The act of confirming the truth of a matter or person.

Oath

A statement of fact calling upon something or someone that the oath maker considers sacred usually God (on the bible), as a witness to the binding nature of the truth of the statement of fact. To swear is to take an oath, to make a solemn vow.

Those who object to making an oath will often make an affirmation instead.