(a) For a violation of any provision of this article, an online notarization platform or depository is liable in civil action to the persons injured thereby for any of the following:

(1) The greater of the following:

Terms Used In California Government Code 8231.17

  • Audio-video recording: means a recording of the audio-video communication of an online notarial act required by Section 8231. See California Government Code 8231.1
  • City: includes "city and county" and "incorporated town" but does not include "unincorporated town" or "village. See California Government Code 20
  • County: includes city and county. See California Government Code 19
  • Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
  • Depository: means an individual or entity that has an active registration with the Secretary of State pursuant to Section 8231. See California Government Code 8231.1
  • Electronic: means relating to technology having electrical, digital, magnetic, wireless, optical, electromagnetic, or similar capabilities. See California Government Code 8231.1
  • Electronic journal: means an active sequential record of official acts performed while using an online notarization system performed by a person acting as a notary public authorized to perform online notarization maintained in a secure electronic format according to the requirements of this article and any rules or regulations adopted by the Secretary of State pursuant to this article. See California Government Code 8231.1
  • Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
  • Online notarization platform: means an individual or entity that has an active registration with the Secretary of State pursuant to Section 8231. See California Government Code 8231.1
  • Person: includes any person, firm, association, organization, partnership, limited liability company, business trust, corporation, or company. See California Government Code 17
  • Plaintiff: The person who files the complaint in a civil lawsuit.
  • Principal: means an individual, other than a credible witness pursuant to §. See California Government Code 8231.1
  • Record: means information that is inscribed on a tangible medium or that is stored in an electronic or other medium and is retrievable in both physical and electronic form. See California Government Code 8231.1
  • State: means the State of California, unless applied to the different parts of the United States. See California Government Code 18
  • Subdivision: means a subdivision of the section in which the term occurs unless some other section is expressly mentioned. See California Government Code 10

(A) Any actual damages sustained by that person as a result of the violation.

(B) Statutory damages of two hundred fifty dollars ($250) per violation.

(2) Injunctive or declaratory relief. Such relief is presumed to accrue to the benefit of the public.

(3) Any other relief that the court deems proper.

(b) In any successful cause of action under this section, the court shall award costs of the action, together with reasonable attorney’s fees, as determined by the court.

(c) An action under subdivision (a) shall be brought no later than four years from the date the plaintiff had actual knowledge of the violation.

(d) (1) The Attorney General, a city attorney, including the city attorney of a city and county, a county counsel, or a district attorney may bring a civil action in the name of the people of the State of California against an online notarization platform or depository for any violation of this article and recover or obtain any of the remedies available under subdivision (a).

(2) An action shall be brought under this subdivision no later than four years from the date the online notarization platform or depository notifies the Secretary of State and the Attorney General of the violation that is the basis of the action.

(e) An online notarization platform shall not be vicariously liable for any of the following and shall not be vicariously liable in any civil action brought under this article for any damages proximately resulting from any of the following:

(1) The negligence, fraud, or willful misconduct of the notary public, principal, or the person that requested notarization of the record, or the notary public’s failure to comply with the requirements of this article, any rules or regulations adopted by the Secretary of State pursuant to this article, or any applicable law, unless the notary public is an employee or agent of the online notarization platform, in which case the online notarization platform is responsible for the conduct of the notary public to the extent provided under other applicable law.

(2) A notary public’s failure to timely download an electronic journal or audio-video recording or failure to timely transfer those records to the Secretary of State, or the notary public’s deletion of one or more audio-video recording or entries in the notary public’s electronic journal.

(3) The contents of records uploaded to the online notarization platform for notarization.

(Added by Stats. 2023, Ch. 291, Sec. 8. (SB 696) Effective January 1, 2024.)

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