Skip to main content

Recently Asked Questions

To search the RAQ database, use the search box at the top of the page. Recordings of Ask the Lawyer webinars and more information can be be found on the Resources Page.

Submit a Question to Ask the Lawyer About the Service

Displaying 1 - 1 of 1
Question Submission Date
Witnessing a Document

A patron came in and asked me to “witness a signature.” He was signing some bank document, but it didn’t need to be notarized, just witnessed. I realized he wasn’t signing his name, and when I asked him about it, he said that it was his aunt’s name and he had a Power of Attorney - he showed me those documents, so I ended up signing as a witness. But I felt uncomfortable about it. My understanding is if you have a POW, you should be signing your own name, not forging the signature of that other person. I asked my wife who is an attorney about it, and she said I shouldn’t have signed as a witness. This is a regular patron of ours, so I’m concerned not only that this will come up again, but that I will get pushback if I refuse to sign as a witness.