Notarise, Authenticate or Legalise
SPECIALIST ATTORNEY
A Notary Public is a specialist attorney who has an intimate knowledge of certain acts, and the processes
prescribed therein, and who is legally empowered to officially witness signatures, take statements and certify the validity of documents.
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Being held to a higher standard of care than an attorney, a notary is a specialist in the drafting and/or legalisation
of certain documents. The legality of which can be positively assumed, drawn from the fact that the document
was notarially executed.
Service Breakdown
Antenuptial Contracts ​
A marriage out of community of property is achieved by drawing up an antenuptial contract (ANC). The ANC will be the most important contract that a married couple will sign in their lifetime. Entered into before marriage, the purpose of the contract is to change some or all of the automatic financial consequences of marriage.
The ANC allows the husband and wife to tailor-make their very own matrimonial property regime. They can include any provisions they like in their ANC, as long as the provisions are not against the law, good morals or the nature of marriage. ANC’s are problematic to change as they dictate the financial and proprietary consequences of the couple’s future and can affect the rights of the couple’s creditors.
Notarial Deeds
Certain documents are required by law to be notarially executed, in which case a notary has to draft the document which is then signed and witnessed in the presence of the notary. These documents are known as notarial deeds, and include, inter alia, ante- and postnuptial contracts, deeds of servitude, deeds of cession of usufruct, notarial leases, trust deeds of donation and notarial bonds. Such documents are kept in the notary’s safekeeping and the notary is also required to keep a protocol and register of all the documents drafted by and attested to before him.
Notary Apostille & Legalisation
A notary is also needed for the noting of protests regarding a bill of exchange as well as Notary Apostille & legalisation services which include attestation, authentication and notarising of documents for use in foreign countries. Legalisation of documents means that official documents are sealed and signed with an Apostille Certificate affixed for use internationally (where countries are party to The Hague Convention, to which South Africa is a party). Or, where countries are not party to The Hague Convention, with a Certificate of Authentication.