Government of Jamaica
KINGSTON, Jamaica -Honourable Delroy Chuck, Minister of Justice, is urging all notaries public to promote their services so they can better serve Jamaicans.
Minister Chuck made this appeal during a ceremony held on Friday, July 25, at the Ministry of Justice to present the commissioning instruments to eight newly appointed notaries. During his address, the Minister also strongly encouraged the Society of Notaries Public to ensure that the general public is well informed about the services offered by a notary.
The Minister in addressing the newly minted notaries stated:
“I am going to urge that you make your office known, and I have also asked the Society to have a list and website of all notaries, with their contact number and email, so that persons who need the service of a notary public do not have to be driving around and asking questions. They can at least communicate with a notary public by email and arrange a time to have a document notarized”. He further urged the notaries to not only make themselves accessible, but also to actively make an effort to make the services offered by a notary public more widely known across Jamaica.
The Notaries Public Act stipulates that any “fit and proper person” can be commissioned and appointed by His Excellency the Governor General of the island of Jamaica as a notary public. Once commissioned, a notary is tasked with carrying out such duties assigned to the office under the laws of Jamaica... and is deemed an officer of the Supreme Court. This person is also authorised to authenticate contracts, acknowledge deeds, take affidavits, protest bills of exchange, and take depositions.
A notary public also witnesses signatures; however, their role differs from that of a Justice of the Peace. A notary in authenticating documents for international use, has to exercise a greater duty of care. Additionally, a notary public can charge fees for their services, whereas Justices of the Peace carry out their duties on a voluntary basis.
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The commissioning of these eight (8) new notaries boosted the island’s total number of notaries to approximately one hundred and twenty-six (126). While welcoming the new notaries public on Friday, the Minister also noted that the island has experienced an increase of fifty percent in the number of notaries since 2016, as he noted that prior to that period, there were roughly sixty (60) notaries on the island, most of whom were located in Kingston and St Andrew.
Stacie-Ann Carty, Cecelia Chapman Daley, Shelley-Anne Forte-Sykes, Nadine Guy, Patricia Ramsaran, Gabrielle Maunsell Warren, Jacqueline Whitely, and Glenroy Williams are the newly commissioned notaries.
