The COVID Project
The record
- Jurisdiction
- New Jersey (Legislature) · New Jersey
- Level
- State
- Authority
- N.J. Const. art. IV (legislative power); operates 'during the public health emergency and state of emergency declared by the Governor in Executive Order 103 of 2020'
- Issued
- 2020-04-14 Apr. 14, 2020
- Effective
- 2020-04-14 (sec. 2: 'This act shall take effect immediately') (read as 2020-04-14)
- End
- By its terms for the duration of the EO 103 public health emergency and state of emergency; the public health emergency ended June 4, 2021 (P.L. 2021, c. 103) while the state of emergency continued; remote notarial acts were made permanent by P.L. 2021, c. 179 (July 22, 2021) (successor statute described by category; text not read) (read as 2021-09-30)
- In force
- Apr. 14, 2020 to Sept. 30, 2021
- Quarters
- 2020 Q22020 Q32020 Q42021 Q12021 Q22021 Q3
2020 Q22020 Q32020 Q42021 Q12021 Q22021 Q3
- Limitation types
- Courts and public officesOther
- Addressees
- notaries public
- officers authorized to take oaths and acknowledgments
- remotely located individuals
- parties to real estate, lending and corporate documents
- Functions reached
- CL closings, acknowledgments and deeds (real estate, title, lending)
- OF law and accounting offices
- FI loan documents
- CB
- OP corporate filings requiring notarization
- Collection
- State motor-vehicle offices, secretaries of state and recorders AGY-ST-DMV-SOS-RECORDERS
Operative words
b. Notwithstanding the provisions of any law or regulation to the contrary, during the public health emergency and state of emergency declared by the Governor in Executive Order 103 of 2020, a notary public appointed pursuant to the provisions of the 'Notaries Public Act of 1979,' P.L.1979, c. 460 (C.52:7-10 et seq.), or otherwise qualified and commissioned as a notary public in this State or an officer authorized to take oaths, affirmations and affidavits under R.S.41:2-1 or to take acknowledgements under R.S.46:14-6.1 may perform notarial acts using communication technology for a remotely located individual if: (1) the notary public or officer: (a) has personal knowledge of the identity of the individual... (3) the notary public or officer or a person acting on their behalf creates an audio-visual recording of the performance of the notarial act
Enforcement
Statute; subsection d. excludes records governed by the Uniform Commercial Code (other than specified sections); subsection e. requires the certificate to state that communication technology was used
Notes
Enacted four weeks after the MVC and county offices closed; the Legislature's own title ties the relief to the EO 103 emergency.