Scrivener Notaries

Scrivener notaries are notaries who are members of the Worshipful Company of Scriveners, formed in 1373 as a livery company for those who were originally known as Writers of the Court Letter, that is to say those who wrote confidential documents such as wills, charters and legal documents, as opposed to other books such as church service books. Scrivener Notaries traditionally practise in the City of London and are obliged to become members of the Company of Scriveners on qualification. Scrivener Notaries hold 14 out of the 27 places on the Court of Assistants, the Company’s ruling body and come from a wide range of professional backgrounds and include solicitors, barristers, accountants, patent attorneys, and many others.

Qualification as a Scrivener Notary is now governed by the Scriveners (Qualifications) Rules 1998 which came into force on 1 February 1999. A copy of those Rules can be found on the Company of Scriveners web site. Rule 3 provides that, in order to qualify as a scrivener notary a person must first qualify as a general notary (see the separate page entitled Faculty of Notaries elsewhere on this web site).

To qualify as a scrivener notary, it is necessary to have a postgraduate master?s degree in a relevant subject or take to have taken an examination in advanced notarial law and practice and to pass the foreign language examinations as specified in Schedule 3 to the Rules. These examinations require translation both from and into the main language of your choice and translation into English of standard legal documents in a subsidiary language. Exemptions from the language examinations are available in certain circumstances. In addition an applicant must undertake a period of practical training with a scrivener notary – usually for two years – or if in actual practice as a general notary at the relevant time elect to undergo a period of supervised practice.