How can you justify that notarial fees are included in the turnover figure?
We had a number of responses to our first 2010 consultation on fairer fees from notaries. After consideration, the SRA Board concluded that the SRA’s new entity-based regulatory powers mean that, if notarial services are provided through a firm regulated by the SRA, the SRA bears some regulatory responsibility—if not for the notarial act itself, then for the way in which the firm offers and delivers the service to clients. For example, if the firm were to advertise notarial services in a misleading way, that would be a matter for the SRA; it might also be an issue for the notary regulator, in relation to the individual. Including gross fees from notarial activities delivered by the firm can therefore be justified. As such, notarial fees should be included in a firm’s turnover figure.
