What must a Notary do before allowing someone to act as a witness?

The correct approach before allowing someone to act as a witness is to ensure that the witness is impartial. In the context of notarization and witnessing, impartiality is crucial because a witness should not have any personal interest or vested stake in the matter at hand. This ensures that the witness can provide an unbiased perspective when verifying the signature or the identity of the parties involved in the transaction. An impartial witness helps maintain the integrity of the notarization process and reinforces the reliability of the document being notarized.

While verifying identity is important in the overall notarization process, particularly for the parties in the transaction, the question specifically concerns the role of the witness. Ensuring that the witness is impartial is therefore a primary responsibility that notaries must uphold to maintain the fairness and legality of the witnessing process.