Resources > Glossary > Competence

Glossary of Notary Public, Mortgage, Signing Agent, and Loan Signing Terms.

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Common Terms 1   Common Terms 2

Competence

Phonetics: com·pe·tence \'käm-pə-tən(t)s\

Function: noun

Definition 1:
The ability to understand. A notary should be comfortable that all parties understand what they are signing or affirming, especially when notarizing patients in a hospital who are either elderly, or on medication. One way that a notary can test competence is to ask the signer a few questions to see if the signer can speak and think coherently.