Acknowledgment.
An acknowledgment is a notary act where a signer appears before a notary, and acknowledges signing a particular document by presenting the document to the notary. The purpose of an acknowledged signature is to prove that a particular individual really signed a particular document and that forgery or fraud didn't take place.
The signer can sign the document before they see the notary public, or at the time they see the notary public
The notary public must positively identify the signer by: (1) Personally knowing the signer (2) Identification documents, or (3) credible witnesses. Please see our identification tips and information.
The notary must complete a journal entry for each document signed by the signer, and the signer must sign the notary's journal in the signature section of the corresponding journal entry. The notary must complete the certificate wording and then sign and stamp the notary certificate. The notary certificate can be embedded within the end of the document, or can be on a separate form that can be stapled to the document.