1-5-608. Foreign notarial acts. (1) A notarial act performed under the authority of and in the jurisdiction of a foreign state or a constituent unit of the foreign state or under the authority of a multinational or international governmental organization has the same effect under the law of this state as if performed by a notarial officer of this state.

Terms Used In Montana Code 1-5-608

  • Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
  • Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
  • Notarial act: means an act, whether performed with respect to a tangible or electronic record, that a notarial officer may perform under the law of this state. See Montana Code 1-5-602
  • Notarial officer: means a notary public or other individual authorized to perform notarial acts. See Montana Code 1-5-602
  • Official stamp: means a physical image affixed to or embossed on a tangible record or an electronic image attached to or logically associated with an electronic record. See Montana Code 1-5-602
  • Record: means information that is inscribed on a tangible medium or that is stored in an electronic or other medium and is retrievable in perceivable form. See Montana Code 1-5-602
  • Signature: means a tangible symbol or an electronic signature that evidences the signing of a record. See Montana Code 1-5-602
  • State: means a state of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, or any territory or insular possession subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. See Montana Code 1-5-602
  • United States: includes the District of Columbia and the territories. See Montana Code 1-1-201

(2)An “apostille” in the form prescribed by the Hague Convention of October 5, 1961, and issued by a foreign state that is a party to the Hague Convention conclusively establishes that the signature of the notarial officer is genuine and that the notarial officer holds the indicated office.

(3)A consular authentication issued by an individual designated by the United States department of state as a notarizing officer for performing notarial acts overseas and attached to the record with respect to which the notarial act is performed conclusively establishes that the signature of the notarial officer is genuine and that the notarial officer holds the indicated office.

(4)If the title of office and indication of authority to perform notarial acts in a foreign state appears in a digest of foreign law or in a list customarily used as a source for that information, the authority of an officer with that title to perform notarial acts is conclusively established.

(5)The signature and official stamp of an individual holding an office described in subsection (4) are prima facie evidence that the signature is genuine and the individual holds the designated title.

(6)For the purposes of this section, “foreign state” means a government other than the United States, a state, or a federally recognized Indian tribe.