Quick Hit: New N.Y. Notarization Rules

Albany, NY (WorkersCompensation.com) -- Among the many new things 2024 will bring is a change to notarization requirements in the Empire State.

Effective Jan. 1, the notarization requirement fades off into the sunset and affirmations will have the same force and effect as affidavits.

Thus, the New York Workers' Compensation Board has updated several forms that previously required notarized affidavits to remove the notarization requirement and allow affirmations under penalties of perjury.

The forms include the following:

• The RB-89 series (RB-89, RB-89.1, RB-89.2, and RB-89.3)
• C-32.1
• C-32AF
• AFF-1
• WTC-12
• OC-401.1R
• IME-7
• HP-J1
• The DB-800 series (DB-800, DB-801, and DB-802)
• DB-150
• DB-130
• C-105.1
• C-100.2
• C-65

Workers' Comp 101: While not involving a form, notarization challenges played a central role in one attorney's violation of New York's Rules of Professional Conduct. In Matter of Ellenberg, 218 A.D. 3d 24 (N.Y. App. Div. 2023), an attorney who had practiced law for 48 years represented a workers' compensation claimant and, in the course of so doing, signed the client's name to a release without her permission, notarized the forged client's signature on the claimant release, submitted the release to the WCB without the client's approval, signed the client's name to a waiver agreement without her permission, and submitted the waiver agreement to the WCB without the client's approval. Although the attorney's actions were motivated by his desire to resolve the client's case as quickly as possible during the COVID-19 pandemic and the notarization was influenced by the prevalence of the virtual execution of documents during the pandemic, the attorney was suspended from practicing law for two months.

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