Indiana Notary Journals

Does Indiana require a notary journal?

No. Indiana does not require a notary journal.

Source: Indiana Notary Public Handbook.

Indiana does not require notaries to maintain a journal of their notarial acts. Leading notary associations recommend that notaries maintain a journal, both as a good professional practice and as protection in the event the notary is accused of fraud or malpractice. The Secretary of State’s office strongly recommends that notaries record all their notarial acts in a notary journal. This record of acts can protect the notary in case of a lawsuit.

The notarial journal is a vital way for a notary to exercise reasonable care. If anyone wishes to make inquiries about a notarization, few people can trust their memory to recall the details of a notarization performed months or years before without referring to a journal. The journal reminds a notary to ask each customer for information that may be important down the road. The journal can even help prevent a notary from being named in a lawsuit.

Recommended Notary Journal Entries
For each notarization, record the following information in your journal:
• Date and time of the notarial act
• Type of notarial act performed
• Date of the document, if any
• Type of document notarized (i.e. will, contract, deed, etc.)
• Name of the signer
• Description of how the notary public identified the signer
• Fees collected, if any
• Any other pertinent information
• Unusual circumstances such as reason for refusal to notarize, etc.