Notarial Services for Business and Individuals

Notaries deal with the preparation and authentication of documents for use overseas. The office of notary is an internationally recognised legal one. This means that a notary’s signature and seal of office lends authenticity to a document, which can subsequently be relied on by overseas individuals and institutions.
Contact Patrick Selley

Notary,

Devon

In England and Wales, a Notary Public is a specialised lawyer and member of the third and oldest branch of the legal profession the others being barristers and solicitors.

Notaries were originally appointed by the Pope. However, since Henry VIII’s split with Rome in the early 1500’s, notaries have been appointed by the Archbishop of Canterbury on authority from the Crown with the Archbishop of Canterbury’s jurisdiction being exercised through the Court of Faculties, being one of the oldest courts in England and Wales.

There are fewer than 800 notaries in England and Wales.

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What I do

Every instruction is different but has a number of core elements.

01.
I will ensure that you understand the document and that you intend to be bound by it.
02.
I will ensure that the document is not to be used for any unlawful purpose.
03.
If you are acting as a representative of an organisation or company I will ensure that you have the authority to enter into it.
04.
I will authenticate the document and your execution of it.
05.
I will keep records of these matters.
Based on Dartmoor with easy access to the A38 and A30, I can see clients across the South West or at offices in Chancery Lane, London.

Legalisation

You may also need the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office to legalise your notarised document by way of an apostille. The apostille is a certificate affixed to your document by the FCDO (where my signature and seal of office are registered), that authenticates me as a notary public. It means that your document will be recognised when presented in the receiving jurisdiction.

Depending on which country (for example, China), you may need further legalisation by the embassy or high commission of the country where that document will be used. I work with experienced agents who are familiar with the bureaucratic idiosyncrasies of different jurisdictions and can arrange for your documents to be couriered overseas.

About me

I qualified as a solicitor in 1983 after graduating from the University of Bristol and have worked in Leeds, London, Hong Kong and in the West Country, notably with Bond Pearce, before joining Keystone Law in 2009.

I graduated from the UCL Notarial Practice course in 2023 and was admitted as a Notary Public in the same year..

Based on Dartmoor with easy access to the A38 and A30 I can see clients across the South West and at Chancery Lane in London. I live with my French wife who retired as a dental surgeon to become a writer. When not working you may find me practising on my Pleyel grand piano or kayaking round Burgh Island.
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Client testimonials

I was facing an impossible situation with a rogue business lender who was threatening me with an unjustified claim on an alleged guarantee for several million pounds and Patrick restored my faith in lawyers by seeing them off completely and recovered costs into the bargain.

william L
suffolk

Patrick has been my solicitor for 20 years and has saved my life (financially), probably more than once! He always charges a fair price for his work.

william s
belfast

Patrick has been my lawyer for 15 years and I have always found him very responsive and reliable and he gets to the point very quickly which is what I need from a lawyer. I would have no hesitation in recommending him and am sure that he will bring the same qualities to bear in his work as a Notary Public.

hugh beaumont
high wycombe