Home>Levelset Community>Legal Help>Should an owner accept a non-notarized pay application?

Should an owner accept a non-notarized pay application?

Good morning, with the current COVID 19 stay at home order in VA and MD, my GC is asking if the owner can accept a pay application without it being notarized. Stating they will send a notarized copy when allowed to return to their offices. What risk does the owner expose himself to by agreeing to this?

1 reply

Apr 1, 2020

Pay applications aren't required, by law, to be notarized. Rather, they're simply a function of contract, preference, and habit. So, if it's agreeable, an owner or GC could absolutely agree to go forward without notarizing payment applications. If the contracts for the project don't require that pay apps must be notarized, then there may not even be a need to ask for permission - project participants can legally proceed without having their pay apps notarized. Though, this could create some tension if not properly discussed. As for the risk involved - having a pay app notarized is a perceived extra layer of protection. When a document has been notarized, you know the signature isn't forged. Further, it's impossible to claim that there was somehow an accident or mishap when the document is signed - notarization is a very deliberate process. Honestly, notarization is a bit of an outdated formality, and it doesn't really provide additional protection unless there's an allegation that the document wasn't actually signed by the person who's supposed to sign it. Even then - not having a document notarized isn't an insurmountable problem. Instead of making the process more sound, requiring notarization will slow down the processing of documents and add extra expense or considerations to an already-slow construction payment process. With that being said, it is common for payment applications to be notarized - and a notary block is even a part of the AIA's pay app templates.

Additional resources

Here are some additional pay app resources I think will be valuable: - To Notarize or Not? A Guide to Common Construction Documents - Construction Payment Applications | FAQs, Guide, and Forms Additionally, keep in mind that there may be some solutions to notarization hurdles. You can learn about those below.

Virginia mobile notaries

The following are a few of the many notaries who can come to you to notarize documents like pay apps: - Virginia's Mobile Notary Services - VirginiaMobileNotary.com - Superior Mobile Notary Services

Remote notary services

Virginia also allows for remote notarization. Here are a few of the service providers who can help make that happen: - DocVerify - NotaryCam

Virginia's stay home order and construction

Finally, as you may know, most construction can currently continue as "essential" business in Virginia. Obviously, that could change in a hurry and some other states have stopped construction work, at least to some degree. To stay on top of that, it'd be wise to keep an eye out for announcements from local and state governments. Additionally, this tracker from Levelset should be useful: Can I do Construction Work In my State?

0 people found this helpful

Helpful