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Expert Surety Bonds Since 2004
Need assistance? +1 815-826-6324 (815-8-BondAI) phil@AmericasSuretyBonds.com
Expert Surety Bonds Since 2004
The thing that sinks new California notaries is not the exam. It is the 30 day window after the commission starts. Miss it and the commission never takes effect. This is the plain $15,000 bond the state requires, with no insurance attached. Order it the day the commission arrives so the county clerk filing lands well inside the window.
Every person appointed a notary public in California must execute a $15,000 official bond under Government Code 8212, written by an admitted surety insurer. Within 30 days after the commission term begins, the bond and an oath of office are filed with the county clerk in the county of the notary's principal place of business. This bond carries no errors and omissions coverage, which state law does not require.
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Government Code 8213 gives a newly appointed notary 30 days from the beginning of the term in the commission to file the official bond and an oath of office with the county clerk. That is the county where the notary's principal place of business is located, which may not be the county of residence. If the filing is not made within the 30 days, the commission does not take effect. The Secretary of State says the period cannot be extended and suggests filing in person to make sure it is on time.
The amount comes from Government Code 8212, and it must be a bond from an admitted surety insurer rather than a cash deposit. Under Government Code 8214, a notary and the sureties on the bond are liable to anyone injured by the notary's official misconduct or neglect for all damages sustained. The surety's role is to make sure an injured person can collect. A surety that pays a claim will expect the notary to pay it back.
State law requires the bond only. This version does not include errors and omissions insurance, so any claim a notary faces personally is the notary's to handle. Some notaries are comfortable with that. Others add a separate E&O policy.
The commission term is four years (Government Code 8204). A name change means filing a new oath and an amendment to the bond with the county clerk within 30 days of the amended commission. A move of the principal place of business to another county lets the notary file a new oath in the new county along with a new bond or a duplicate of the original bond.
The county clerk in the county where your principal place of business is located. That is the county the Secretary of State points to, and it may differ from where you live.
No. The Secretary of State says the 30 day period cannot be extended, and Government Code 8213 says the commission does not take effect unless the bond and oath are filed in time.
Yes. Government Code 8212 requires the $15,000 official bond and does not require errors and omissions insurance.
File a new oath of office and an amendment to your bond with the county clerk within 30 days from the date the amended commission was issued.
You may file a new oath of office in the new county. If you do, it goes in with a new bond or a duplicate of the original bond.
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