AnalysisWe are reporting on this new Tennessee law to highlight the diverse and varied types of circumstances and documents that involve the intervention of a Notary Public. In Tennessee, no person can undertake the administration of the estate of a minor or person with a disability until that person has been issued letters of guardianship or conservatorship (TCA 34-1-104[a]). Guardians and conservators must be appointed by the court and the guardian or conservator must take an oath before receiving the order of guardianship or conservatorship if the duties involve being a fiduciary of the minor’s or person with a disability’s property. The oath includes a promise to timely file each required inventory and accounting and to spend the assets of the minor or person with a disability only as approved by the court. Up until now, the oath was to be made in person before the clerk of court. House Bill 1993 authorizes a clerk of court to waive the in-person oath for a fiduciary (e.g., guardian or conservator) if the fiduciary files a written oath affirmed in the presence of a Notary or signed and dated under penalty of perjury. This is just another option for the person to obtain the necessary oath and one that will be particularly helpful for fiduciaries that are not residents of the county where the guardianship or conservatorship is granted. While making the oath under penalty of perjury without the involvement of a Notary is permitted under House Bill 1993, the oath administered by a Notary on the oath form provides a layer of security and authenticity.
Read House Bill 1993.