American Land Title Association releases set of principles for remote notarizations

The American Land Title Association (ALTA) has released a set of principles for notarizations that are conducted remotely.

In a statement, ALTA said that the principles provide “guidelines to give consumers digital technology options for notarizations that incorporate safeguards to reduce fraud and protect property rights of consumers” during the digital closing process.

The principles include: leveraging technology by providing options that scale sufficiently to allow for broad adoption; protecting consumers by having safeguards in the notarization process to reduce fraud and protect the property rights of homeowners; and ensuring usability by providing notarizations that are recognized in any state or jurisdiction – with capabilities in place to produce certified paper copies of electronic documents.

“The American Land Title Association and its members have been at the forefront in developing standards for digital closing options that have the appropriate safeguards and authentication process to protect consumers while ensuring the notarizations provide certainty and effective constructive notice under state law,” said Diane Tomb, chief executive officer of ALTA. “Due to the COVID-19 health crisis, the need for digital transactions and use of remote notarizations has increased. We believe our principles provide a strong foundation for the use of various types of remote notarizations going forward.”