West Virginia Code 39-4-21 – Grounds to deny, refuse to renew, revoke, suspend, or condition commission of notary public
(a) The Secretary of State may deny, refuse to renew, revoke, suspend or impose a condition on a commission as notary public for any act or omission that demonstrates the individual lacks the honesty, integrity, competence, or reliability to act as a notary public, including:
Terms Used In West Virginia Code 39-4-21
- Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
- Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
- State: when applied to a part of the United States and not restricted by the context, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories, and the words "United States" also include the said district and territories. See West Virginia Code 2-2-10
(1) Failure to comply with this article;
(2) A fraudulent, dishonest or deceitful misstatement or omission in the application for a commission as a notary public submitted to the Secretary of State;
(3) A conviction of the applicant or notary public of any felony or a crime involving fraud, dishonesty or deceit;
(4) A finding against, or admission of liability by, the applicant or notary public in any legal proceeding or disciplinary action based on the applicant's or notary public's fraud, dishonesty or deceit;
(5) Failure by the notary public to discharge any duty required of a notary public, whether by this article, rules promulgated by the Secretary of State, or any federal or state law;
(6) Use of false or misleading advertising or representation by the notary public representing that the notary has a duty, right or privilege that the notary does not have;
(7) Violation by the notary public of a rule of the Secretary of State regarding a notary public;
(8) Denial, refusal to renew, revocation, suspension or conditioning of a notary public commission in another state;
(9) Failure of the notary public to maintain an assurance as provided in subsection (d), section twenty of this article;
(10) Charging more than the maximum fees specified in section thirty of this article; and
(11) Failure to notify the Secretary of State of an address or name change pursuant to subsection (b), section twenty-two of this article.
(b) If the Secretary of State denies, refuses to renew, revokes, suspends or imposes conditions on a commission as a notary public, the applicant or notary public is entitled to timely notice and hearing in accordance with article five, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code.
(c) The authority of the Secretary of State to deny, refuse to renew, suspend, revoke or impose conditions on a commission as a notary public does not prevent a person from seeking and obtaining other criminal or civil remedies provided by law.