§ 138 — Powers of notaries public or other officers who are stockholders, directors, officers or employees of a corporation

§ 138. Powers of notaries public or other officers who are\nstockholders, directors, officers or employees of a corporation. A\nnotary public, justice of the supreme court, a judge, clerk, deputy\nclerk, or special deputy clerk of a court, an official examiner of\ntitle, or the mayor or recorder of a city, a justice of the peace,\nsurrogate, special surrogate, special county judge, or commissioner of\ndeeds, who is a stockholder, director, officer or employee of a\ncorporation may take the acknowledgment or proof of any party to a\nwritten instrument executed to or by such corporation, or administer an\noath to any other stockholder, director, officer, employee or agent of\nsuch corporation, and such notary public may protest for non-acceptance\nor non-payment, bills of exchange, drafts, checks, notes and other\nnegotiable instruments owned or held for collection by such corporation;\nbut none of the officers above named shall take the acknowledgment or\nproof of a written instrument by or to a corporation of which he is a\nstockholder, director, officer or employee, if such officer taking such\nacknowledgment or proof be a party executing such instrument, either\nindividually or as representative of such corporation, nor shall a\nnotary public protest any negotiable instruments owned or held for\ncollection by such corporation, if such notary public be individually a\nparty to such instrument, or have a financial interest in the subject of\nsame. All such acknowledgments or proofs of deeds, mortgages or other\nwritten instruments, relating to real property heretofore taken before\nany of the officers aforesaid are confirmed. This act shall not affect\nany action or legal proceeding now pending.\n