To address the challenges posed by the COVID-19 public health emergency,
on April 23, 2020, the Massachusetts Legislature passed a Virtual Notarization
Act that goes into effect immediately and will remain in effect until
three business days after the termination of Governor Baker’s March
10, 2020 state of emergency declaration. It is expected that the Governor
will sign the bill and it will become law immediately.
The Act will permit the remote or virtual execution, notarization, filing
or recording of virtually notarized legal documents such as wills, trusts,
nominations of guardians or conservators, caregiver authorization affidavits,
durable powers of attorney, health care proxy and HIPAA documents as well
as mortgages and other documents transferring title to real estate. As
with legal documents signed and notarized conventionally and in-person,
care must be taken to observe the requirements of the Act in order to
ensure the validity and enforceability of the document and its related
transaction. An
overview of the Act along with templates and sample scripts to be used by notaries
to comply with its provisions is included on our website
here.