What is a subscribing witness?
A subscribing witness is a person who either watches another (the principal) sign a document or takes that person’s acknowledgment of an already signed document and appears before the Notary on behalf of the principle. The subscribing witness must sign the document in addition to the principal, must be personally known by the Notary, and must take an oath or affirmation stating he or she witnessed the principle sign or took the principal’s acknowledgment. A subscribing witness cannot be used in conjunction with any Deed of Trust, Mortgage, Security Agreement, Quitclaim Deed, or Grant Deed document (per Government Code Section 27287).
A subscribing witness is a third party who has witnessed the signing of a document to be notarized and who appears before the notary with the document, in place of the document signer. There are four requirements that must be met for this to be valid: 1. The subscribing witness must be personally known to the notary. 2. The subscribing witness must declare under oath or affirmation that the subscribed signature is that of the principal. 3. The subscribing witness must sign the document in additional to the principal, as a witness. 4. The subscribing witness must be impartial. The subscribing witness acknowledgment is only recommended as a last alternative.
A Subscribing Witness is a person who who appears on behalf of another person, the principal, to prove the principal signed the document. There are many requirements attached to this type of witness. One major requirement is the identity of the Subscribing Witness must be established by the oath of a credible witness whom the notary personally knows and who personally knows the subscribing witness. This type of witness can not be used for a Quitclaim Deed, Grant Deed (other than a trustee’s deed or deed of reconveyance), Mortgage, Deed of Trust or Security Agreement. (Return to Top) What is a “Credible Witness” A Credible Witness is a person (whose identity has been established by the Notary according to Satisfactory Evidence) who personally knows and establishes the identity of another person via oath. (The Notary has to personally know the Credible Witness if he/she is validating the identity of a person with only one Credible Witness.
