Bulletin: NY000170

Dear Associates:

The situation regarding acknowledgments in New York State has become almost comical. In Bulletin No. NY000157 , we reported on the original statutory formulation and the various interpretations made by the counsel's office of the NY Department of State. Since that time, the legislature has amended the statute (Sections 309-a and 309-b of the Real Property Law), modifying the simplified acknowledgment form, and creating a situation where there are now separate forms required for in-state and out-of-state acknowledgments.

Add to that the Department of State interpretation regarding corporate acknowledgments taken out of state, and it appears that there will be at least six separate forms of acknowledgment:

a) The general in-state form (used for all persons and entities, except subscribing witness, taken in New York)

b) The general out-of state form (there is a statutory tension between sections 309 and 309-b; a corporation is a person as defined for use of the 309-b form, but that form is by official interpretation of the Department of state unavailable for corporate acknowledgments taken out of state )

c) The two corporate forms, which, on and after September 1, 1999 cannot be used for corporate acknowledgments taken inside New York State, but must be used only for corporate acknowledgments taken out of state, unless a form of acknowledgment is used under the local law of the jurisdiction in which the acknowledgment is taken and a certificate of conformity is attached.

d) The two subscribing witness forms (one for in-state and one for out-of-state).

Lastly, I suspect that there will be an increasing need for the use of the certificate of conformity when an acknowledgment is taken outside New York State, and the format is not one of the official forms.

The main changes are the additions of venue information within the body of the out-of-state acknowledgments, and the deletion of the apparent requirement that the acknowledgment state after the words "before me," the words, "a notary public of the State of New York."

Note: Military acknowledgments remain unaffected, as the federal statute mercifully overrides the state law.

The updated forms are available by calling the New York City Office or by accessing the Business Practices on Virtual Underwriter via the Web at http://www.vuwriter.com.