A.C. No. 13372 [Formerly CBD Case No. 19-5931] - JUANITO V. PARAS, COMPLAINANT, VS. ATTY. JONATHAN J. DE PAZ.D E C I S I O N - Supreme Court E-Library

Ruling

Accordingly, the IBP-IC recommended that Atty. De Paz be suspended from the practice of law for a period of three months and his current notarial commission be revoked, with a stern warning that a repetition of the same offense or similar conduct will be dealt with severely. [17] In a Resolution [18] dated October 16, 2021, the IBP Board of Governors adopted and approved the IBP-IC's Report and Recommendation. The Issue Before the Court The core issue in this case is whether Atty. De Paz should be held administratively liable for the acts complained of. The Court's Ruling The Court affirms the findings and adopts the recommendation of the IBP with modification as to the imposable penalty. Time and again, the Court has emphasized that the act of notarization is impressed with public interest. "Notarization converts a private document to a public document, making it admissible in evidence without further proof of its authenticity." [19] A notarial document is, by law, entitled to full faith and credence. As such, "notaries public must observe with utmost care the basic requirements in the performance of their duties" [20] in order to preserve the confidence of the public in the integrity of the notarial system. [21] For being invested with public interest, "a lawyer commissioned as a notary public has a responsibility to faithfully observe the rules governing notarial practice, having taken a solemn oath under the [CPR] to obey the laws and to do no falsehood or consent to the doing of any." [22] Sections 1 and 2, Rule VI of the 2004 Rules on Notarial Practice provide: RULE VI Notarial Register Section 1. Form of Notarial Register . (a) A notary public shall keep, maintain, protect and provide for lawful inspection as provided in these Rules, a chronological official notarial register of notarial acts consisting of a permanently bound book with numbered pages. x x x x Section 2. Entries in the Notarial Register . x x x x x x x (e) The notary public shall give to each instrument or document executed, sworn to, or acknowledged before him a number corresponding to the one in his register, and shall also state on the instrument or document the page/s of his register on which the same is recorded. No blank line shall be left between entries. x x x x (h) A certified copy of each month's entries and a duplicate original copy of any instrument acknowledged before the notary public shall, within the first ten (10) days of the month following, be forwarded to the Clerk of Court and shall be under the responsibility of such officer. If there is no entry to certify for the month, the notary shall forward a statement to this effect in lieu of certified copies herein required. (Emphasis supplied) "The notarial registry is a record of the notary public's official acts. Acknowledged documents and instruments recorded [therein] are considered public documents. [Thus,] [i]f the document or instrument does not appear in the notarial records and there is no copy o