December 22, 2010

Delaware Notaries Log In To Digital Age With Online Notary Administration Service

DOVER – Governor Jack Markell announced today that more than 4,000 Delaware notaries have registered with the Delaware Secretary of State to use a new Web-based notary licensing system launched in mid-October. The system allows existing notaries to renew their commissions and manage the status of their account electronically. New notaries can apply for and receive a notary commission electronically. With just over 10,000 notaries in Delaware, 40% have already signed up for this streamlined service.

”This is a great example of how we are using e-Government to lower costs and improve the quality of government services,” said Governor Markell. “This new system allows Delaware to move the centuries-old institution of notary public into the 21st century.”

“The introduction of the new online notary system lowers the cost of processing notary applications, ensures quicker reviews and approvals of notary applications, and enhances customer service,” said Jeffrey Bullock, Delaware Secretary of State. “Delaware's Division of Corporations prides itself on delivering world-class business formation services and our new, online notary system not only saves time and money, but it also creates a platform for launching electronic notary services in 2011.”

Every U.S. state grants commissions to notaries public that allow approved citizens to serve as trusted, third-party witnesses for business and legal agreements. Today, most legal documents are created and distributed electronically but still need to be presented in paper formats to be notarized. An electronic Notary (eNotary) system will provide advantages over a paper system by increasing speed, lowering costs, and enhancing document security and the trustworthiness of the notarial seal by ensuring that document signers are authentic and appear in person before the notary.

To promote the migration of notarization into the digital age, the State is working collaboratively with a Wilmington-based technology company and Microsoft’s eGovernment and U.S. Public Sector groups to build a model electronic notary system that resolves the many limitations of the paper notary process. The system is built on the Microsoft Dynamics CRM platform.

The challenges of moving from paper to electronic notary services aren’t merely technological; there are legal and jurisdictional issues. In 2009, Delaware Governor Jack Markell, signed amendments to Title 29, Chapter 43 of the Delaware Code to modernize the State’s notary laws. The legislation expanded the list of persons that are eligible to apply for Delaware eNotary commissions to include qualified professionals outside the State.

When fully deployed, the Delaware eNotary system will provide a complete suite of eNotary Trust products including electronic notarization, electronic archiving of notarized documents, and authentication. The e-notarization service, built on a Microsoft SharePoint platform, will allow qualified Delaware eNotaries to acknowledge digital documents, manage journal records and archive transactional data over a web-enabled network.