KJM Notary Public

KJM Notary Public My role is to assist clients with the authentication of documents for use outside of England & Wales

31/03/2026

In my natural habitat 😂 my clerk does make me laugh

11/03/2026

This evening I met a client to take her sworn statement, in connection with matrimonial proceedings (divorce) in Ireland. Unfortunately I was unable to take her swear at our appointment. The lawyers for her husband have prepared the statement in her name as written on her marriage certificate but the ID she brought with her to the appointment (Eire Passport) was missing her given first name. No idea how she has been issued with a passport in a different name to that registered on her birth certificate and also her marriage certificate.

But as I cannot confirm her identity exactly to the named party in the proceedings I am unable to take her sworn declaration without an amendment to the document (or an additional declaration being made confirming she is one and the same person as stated in the ID and the document). I am contacting the lawyers in Ireland to explain the situation and request they send the document to include an Also Known As in the statement - every day is a learning day.

04/03/2026

What is the difference between a Solicitor and a Notary Public in the UK?

As a qualified Solicitor I am employed by Fisher Jones Greenwood. I specialise in non-contentious commercial property work (Sales, Purchases, Leases, Financing of all types of commercial property). I am permitted to offer legal services relating to property transactions conducted in England & Wales.

As a Notary Public I am a sole trader with my own professional indemnity insurance and I sign a statement of independence every year to provide to my employer. My notary services are entirely separate and provided by me in my capacity as a Notary Public. We even have our own regulator - the Faculty Office of the Archbishop of Canterbury.

I am permitted to conduct notarial activities for clients with transactions conducted anywhere in the world, (subject to sanctions-which is another spin off topic worthy of its own post!).

To qualify as a Notary Public, the majority of applicants are practising solicitors. You can apply to take the Notary Practice Course with any degree however you do have to prove competency in several areas of law including Company, Property and Inheritance. This is because most of the work a Notary does involves this type of work in a foreign jurisdiction.

I am not qualified as a Notary to advise on the law of any jurisdiction other than England & Wales. But my qualification and admission as a Notary Public means the documents which I attest/notarise/certify/verify/witness are accepted as having good authority when presented for use abroad.

In my capacity as a qualified UK solicitor it is not sufficient for a foreign jurisdiction to accept my signature.

The Notary qualification was not easy to obtain (2 years part time at UCL) but then nothing worth having comes easy. As a result of my qualification, my notary signature and seal carry gravitas in foreign jurisdictions. Sometimes on its own and sometimes with additional legalisation with apostille and embassy stamps - depending on the requirements of the recipient in the jurisdiction.

I am happy to answer any questions you might have on this or any related topic.

04/03/2026

I met with a client today - objective is to obtain German citizenship. They are UK National applying under relaxation of descendants rule to allow for application due to mothers lineage (previously not allowed but current German government recognised this was discriminatory and changed the policy). As part of the application, client had to produce a notarised copy of their UK passport. A strange concept really, you can present this document at a border to gain entry to another country but to produce a copy of this document it has to be authenticated by a Notary Public as an official document. I enjoyed learning something new today about German citizenship applications. Client was happy to receive notarised copy document, having had a certified copy of their passport rejected. That explanation warrants its own post 👀

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Witham
CM82GL

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