Notary may be counted as a will witness

A dispute arose whether the witnesses attested in the testator’s presence.

Three witnesses signed the testator’s will, one of them a notary public who testified that she was present not to act as a witnesses but “to notarize the witnesses.”

Nevertheless, because she testified that she witnessed the testator sign the will and signed the will herself, the notary could be a witness.

According to Land v. Burkhalter, 656 S.E.2d 834 (Ga. 2008), the state statute disqualifying a person from acting as both notary and witness did not apply and the will was deemed not self-proving so the services of a notary were unnecessary.