Massachusetts 2023-2024 Regular Session

Massachusetts House Bill H1699 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	1 of 1
2	2	HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 860 FILED ON: 1/17/2023
3	3	HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 1699
4	4	The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
5	5	_________________
6	6	PRESENTED BY:
7	7	Brian W. Murray
8	8	_________________
9	9	To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
10	10	Court assembled:
11	11	The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:
12	12	An Act making technical changes to the laws regulating a certain notarial act.
13	13	_______________
14	14	PETITION OF:
15	15	NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :DATE ADDED:Brian W. Murray10th Worcester1/17/2023 1 of 3
16	16	HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 860 FILED ON: 1/17/2023
17	17	HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 1699
18	18	By Representative Murray of Milford, a petition (accompanied by bill, House, No. 1699) of
19	19	Brian W. Murray relative to making technical changes to the laws regulating a certain notarial
20	20	act. The Judiciary.
21	21	The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
22	22	_______________
23	23	In the One Hundred and Ninety-Third General Court
24	24	(2023-2024)
25	25	_______________
26	26	An Act making technical changes to the laws regulating a certain notarial act.
27	27	Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
28	28	of the same, as follows:
29	29	1 SECTION 1. Chapter 183 of the General Laws is hereby amended by striking out section
30	30	242 and inserting in place thereof the following new section:
31	31	3 Section 42. The forms set forth in the appendix to this chapter and in section 15 of
32	32	4chapter 222 for taking acknowledgments to deeds and other instruments and for certifying the
33	33	5authority of officers taking proofs or acknowledgments may be used but the existence of those
34	34	6forms shall not preclude the use of any other forms lawfully used as required or authorized by
35	35	7any general or special law or any regulation or executive order regulating notaries public,
36	36	8including forms that acknowledge the act of an individual executing a document in a
37	37	9representative capacity but fail to acknowledge the deed or instrument as the act of the principal
38	38	10or grantor.
39	39	11 SECTION 2. Section 1 of chapter 222 of the General Laws is hereby amended by striking
40	40	12out the definition of “Acknowledgment” and inserting in place thereof the following: 2 of 3
41	41	13“Acknowledgment”, a notarial act in which an individual, at a single time appears, in person,
42	42	14before a notary public, is identified by the notary public through satisfactory evidence of identity
43	43	15and presents a document to the notary public and indicates that the individual has executed the
44	44	16document for the purposes stated therein, and, if applicable, that the individual was authorized to
45	45	17sign in a particular representative capacity and did so as the act of the person or entity stated
46	46	18therein.
47	47	19 SECTION 3. Section 15 of said chapter 222 is hereby amended by striking out subsection
48	48	20(b) and inserting in place thereof the following subsection:
49	49	21 (b) A notary public shall take the acknowledgment of the signature or mark of persons
50	50	22acknowledging for themselves or in any representative capacity by using substantially the
51	51	23following form:
52	52	24 “On this ____ day of ___________, 20__, before me, the undersigned notary public,
53	53	25________________________ (name of document signer) personally appeared, proved to me
54	54	26through satisfactory evidence of identification, which were _______________________, to be
55	55	27the person whose name is signed on the preceding or attached document, and acknowledged to
56	56	28me that (he) (she) signed it for its stated purpose.
57	57	29 (as partner for ____________, a partnership)
58	58	30 (as ____________ for ______________, a corporation or other entity)
59	59	31 (as attorney in fact for ________________, the principal)
60	60	32 (as ___________ for _______________, (a) (the) _________________)
61	61	33 as the act of the (partnership)(corporation or other entity)(principal)( ). 3 of 3
62	62	34 _________________ (official signature and seal of notary public)”.
63	63	35 SECTION 4. Section 20 of said chapter 222 is hereby amended by removing the words
64	64	36“voluntary or free” from the third numbered paragraph of subsection (b).
65	65	37 SECTION 5. Form 13, as set forth in the appendix to chapter 183 of the General Laws, is
66	66	38hereby amended by removing the word “free.”
67	67	39 SECTION 6. Form 14, as set forth in the appendix to chapter 183 of the General Laws, is
68	68	40hereby amended by removing the word “free.”
69	69	41 SECTION 7. Form 15, as set forth in the appendix to chapter 183 of the General Laws, is
70	70	42hereby amended by removing the word “free.”