Our New Anahuac

My father is a practicing attorney in Houston.  A significant portion of his intakes start off with “fui con un notario;”  in English, “I went to a notary.”  When we hear this, we usually assume that the rest of the story can’t be good.

The Office of Attorney General sums up the scam pretty well:

In Texas, a notary is someone licensed to witness the signing of legal documents. In most Latin American countries, however, a “notario” implies that the person is a licensed attorney. Texas law specifically prevents notaries from providing any type of immigration service unless they hold a separate license to practice law.

In a common scam, a person obtains a notary public license in Texas yet presents themself to Spanish-speaking clients as a “notario publico” or licensed attorney who can help the customer with the immigration process.

Many con artists charge hundreds or thousands of dollars to allegedly provide legal assistance in processing INS applications. However, in many cases, the scam artists disappear with the money; charge high fees for filing unnecessary documents; or perform poor quality services that jeopardize clients’ cases.

The above linked article describes one of several prosecutorial efforts against notaries public.

Through my activism, I have spoken to one lady in particular who lost five thousand dollars to a notaria who disappeared. This notaria promised a quick resolution to getting a deported felon papers because her relative was supposedly an agent with immigration.

Unfortunately, we have seen faulty work in many areas of the law, including faulty contracts and real estate work. My father has helped people who thought that they purchased a home through notarios.  These clients were greatly disappointed when they found out that a “Bill of Sale” does not count as a “title transfer” on real property. It really leads to a big mess and a big loss of money for the unsuspecting clients.

At times, out of economic convenience, the clients seek out notarios because they tend to charge a great deal less. As the saying goes, “a veces lo barato sale caro.”

I had someone come in yesterday asking me to fill out some immigration paperwork. Instead, he got a thanks for his confidence, and a lecture on the difference between a notary and an attorney. Many times, people listen and are appreciative of the information. Unfortunately, this compa seem disturbed that I wouldn’t fill out his paperwork and give him a notary stamp for twenty bucks. My last piece of advice to him was to seek a licensed immigration attorney (my father does not practice in the area of immigration), and that for his own sake, to not go to a notary. In one ear and out the other for this compa.

If you deal with La Raza on any financial matters, I urge you to please be aware of this confusion. In Mexico, I understand that a notary is a special designation or rank of attorney. Many people have been taken advantage in this country by incompetent and predatory notaries public.