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Notary Public Exam — Core Principles

Conflict of interest (ME): practice questions

Our Notary Public bank has 5 questions on this topic. Here are 4 of them with answers; the full mock exam draws from every topic, like the real one.

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Question 1 · Maine

What is the status of a notarial act performed in violation of Maine's conflict-of-interest rules in 4 M.R.S. 1904(3)?

  1. Valid unless a court finds intent to defraud
  2. Fully valid, with only a fine to the notary
  3. Void from the start
  4. Voidable
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D. Voidable — 4 M.R.S. 1904(6).

Question 2 · Maine

When may a Maine notary not administer an oath to a circulator of a direct initiative petition?

  1. Whenever the circulator has paid the notary any fee at all
  2. Whenever the notary is registered to vote in the same town where the circulator lives
  3. When the petition has fewer than 100 signatures
  4. When the notary also provides non-notarial services to promote that initiative
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D. When the notary also provides non-notarial services to promote that initiative — 4 M.R.S. 1904(5).

Question 3 · Maine

Under the Maine notary rules, what is a "direct beneficial interest" for conflict-of-interest purposes?

  1. Any record prepared by the notary's employer in the ordinary course of the employer's business, whether or not the notary benefits
  2. A fee beyond the customary notarial fee, or any advantage or property received in connection with the record
  3. Any document the notary has read before the signer arrives
  4. A record recorded in the county where the notary lives
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B. A fee beyond the customary notarial fee, or any advantage or property received in connection with the record — 29-250 C.M.R. ch. 700, 1(2); 4 M.R.S. 1904(3)(B).

Question 4 · Maine

A notary who is a bank employee is asked to acknowledge a loan document. When is this unlawful?

  1. When the borrower is a customer of the notary's branch office
  2. When the notary is a party to the instrument, individually or for the bank
  3. Only if the notary owns more than 10 percent of the bank's outstanding voting stock
  4. Whenever the bank is a party, regardless of the notary's role
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B. When the notary is a party to the instrument, individually or for the bank — 4 M.R.S. 1904(4).

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