Notary public in Germany
The are some important differences between the common law notary public and the civil law notary public. The German notary is not a common law notary public but a civil law notary public, as are most of the notaries in Europe. They authenticate and attest acts and are appointed by the German state. This is because German notaries ("Notare") act as public officers with jurisdiction over voluntary private law. They normally specialise in some particular legal areas:
- - German conveyances
- - German property law
- - German family law
- - German corporate law
- - German successions
Moreover German notaries also provide legal consultancy regarding contractual obligations. A very important matter: under the German law "Bundesnotarordnung" they must provide impartial and independent advise to the parties.
In some German states there as well so called lawyer-notaries ("Anwaltsnotare), who act as lawyers (solicitors) as well as notaries.
As you can see, there are certain differences between European notaries (civil law notaries) and common law notaries (public notaries).
Find an english-speaking notary public in Germany
