Oregon Code § 194.300·Enacted ·Last updated March 01, 2026
Statute Text
Journal.
(1)
Except as provided in subsection (11) of this section, a notary public shall
maintain one or more journals in which the notary public chronicles all
notarial acts that the notary public performs. The notary public shall retain
the journal for 10 years after the performance of the last notarial act
chronicled in the journal.
(2) A journal may
be created on a tangible medium or in an electronic format to chronicle all
notarial acts, regardless of whether those notarial acts are performed for
tangible or electronic records. If the journal is maintained on a tangible
medium, it must be a permanent, bound register with numbered pages. If the
journal is maintained in an electronic format, it must be in a permanent,
tamper-evident electronic format complying with the rules of the Secretary of
State.
(3) An entry in a
journal must be made contemporaneously with performance of each notarial act
and must contain the following information:
(a) The date and
time of the notarial act;
(b) A description
of the record, if any, and type of notarial act;
(c) The full name
and contact address of each individual for whom the notarial act is performed;
(d) If identity
of the individual is based on personal knowledge, a statement to that effect;
(e) If identity
of the individual is based on satisfactory evidence, a brief description of the
method of identification and the identification credential presented, if any,
including the date of expiration of any identification credential;
(f) The signature
of each individual for whom the notarial act is performed; and
(g) The fee, if
any, charged by the notary public.
(4)(a) If a
notary public performs notarial acts involving duplicate originals of a single
statement or document for the same individual on the same date, the notary
public may, in lieu of recording individually in the journal the information
required by subsection (3) of this section for each duplicate original, record
a single entry in the journal for all notarial acts involving the statement or
document. The entry shall set forth all the information required by subsection
(3) of this section and the total number of duplicates of the statement or
document notarized.
(b) If a notary
public performs notarial acts involving different statements or documents for
the same individual on the same date, the notary public may, in lieu of
recording individually in the journal the information required by subsection
(3) of this section for each statement or document, record a single entry in
the journal for all notarial acts involving the statements or documents. The
entry shall set forth the number of statements or documents and the information
required by subsection (3)(c) to (g) of this section and for each statement or
document the information required by subsection (3)(a) and (b) of this section.
If there are duplicate originals of any statement or document, the entry shall
set forth the total number of duplicates of the statement or document
notarized.
(c) If a notary
public performs notarial acts involving more than one statement, signature or
document for the same individual but not on the same date, the notary public
may, in lieu of recording individually in the journal the information required
by subsection (3)(c) to (e) of this section for each notarial act performed for
that individual, record a reference to a prior entry in the notarial journal
for that person. The reference shall identify the page and line numbers of the
prior entry. The prior entry shall set forth the information required by
subsection (3)(c) to (e) of this section.
(5) If a notary
publics journal is lost or stolen, the notary public shall notify promptly the
Secretary of State on discovering that the journal is lost or stolen.
(6) On expiration
of, resignation from, or suspension of, a notary publics commission, the
notary public shall retain the notary publics journal in accordance with
subsection (1) of this section.
(7) On revocation
of a notary publics commission, the notary public shall transmit the journal
to the Secretary of State not later than 30 days after the date of revocation.
(8) On the death
or adjudication of incompetency of a current or former notary public, the
notary publics personal representative, guardian, conservator or trustee or
any other person knowingly in possession of the notary publics journal shall
transmit the journal to the Secretary of State.
(9) A journal in
the possession of a notary public who is not a public official or public
employee is exempt from disclosure under ORS 192.311 to 192.478. A journal in
the possession of the Secretary of State, or in the possession of a notary
public who is a public official or public employee, is not exempt from
disclosure under ORS 192.311 to 192.478 unless the secretary or other custodian
determines that the public interest in disclosure is outweighed by the
interests of the parties to a no
Plain English Explanation
This Oregon statute addresses Journal. AI-powered analysis coming soon.
Key Points
01Part of Oregon statutory law
02Referenced as Oregon Code § 194.300
03Subject to legislative amendments
04Consult a licensed attorney for application to specific cases
Frequently Asked Questions
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