We are publishing yet another story about a notary who succumbed to the pressure and agreed to back date loan documents. Our sharp settlement agents keep catching them over and over again. So why do we keep publishing these stories? Because it is the most efficient way to notify settlement agents to check the approved notary list before using a mobile signing company.

Cathleen Hill, escrow officer with Chicago Title, was working on a refinance transaction. There were three borrowers; two located in Indiana and one in California. The loan documents were received and Cathleen scheduled a mobile signing service to meet with the borrowers in Indiana first.

The documents were sent out and signed with a mobile signing agent on Saturday. Later that same day the notary sent the documents directly to the mobile signing agent in California. The third borrower signed the documents and the fully executed loan package was delivered back to Cathleen on Wednesday.

Cathleen reviewed the documents to ensure nothing was missed. She noticed the third borrower signed the documents on Sunday. She double checked the calendar, which reflected the third borrower's signing appointment was scheduled for Tuesday. She realized there was no way the loan documents could have been delivered to California from Indiana on Sunday. She confirmed this when she tracked the package online.

Cathleen called the signing company the notary worked for, to inquire about the discrepancy. The owner contacted the notary who admitted he allowed the documents to be back dated because the mortgage broker, who attended the signing, pressured both him and the borrower. Cathleen immediately reported this to the lender.

The lender sent out a new set of loan documents to be re–executed by the borrowers. This time Cathleen set the signings up with a notary through BancServ. She also reported the incident to her manager.

An escrow administrator with National Escrow Administration contacted the owner of the signing service company to notify them they were being removed from the Company's approved signing agent list; permanently.

Good catch Cathleen! Back dating loan documents is never acceptable. For her efforts she is being rewarded $1,000. Remember to always check the approved notary list, even when you are scheduling a signing with an approved notary you have worked with before, in order to ensure they are still approved.