May a notary use the title "notary public" on materials advertising an unrelated business?

The title notary public identifies a person exercising a public office, and it carries an implication of official authority that does not attach to any other business the person happens to run. Using it on materials advertising an unrelated business borrows that authority for a private purpose — a client seeing it may reasonably infer some official standing, endorsement or oversight of the business itself, which is exactly the confusion that leads people to accept advice from notaries that they should be getting elsewhere. California therefore restricts use of the title to the rendering of notarial service. The rule does not depend on whether the statement is literally true, whether notarial services also happen to be offered on the premises, or whether the business has any connection with legal work; each of those distractors offers a condition the rule does not contain. A notary who genuinely offers notarial services may advertise them, and that advertisement is where the title belongs.

The title notary public may be used in connection with rendering notarial service, and using it to advertise an unrelated business borrows official authority for a private purpose.

California restricts use of the title notary public to the rendering of notarial service, because the title implies official authority that should not be attached to unrelated commercial activity.

The Title Belongs to the Service. It is not a credential to hang on your other business.

This sits alongside the immigration advertising rules and the notario prohibition as part of a family of restrictions on how the office may be presented.

• •Assuming truthfulness makes the use permissible
• •Relying on also offering notarial services at the location
• •Distinguishing legal from non-legal businesses