Central Florida Paralegal Association, Inc.
Monthly E-Newsletter
CARPE DIEM - SEPTEMBER 2020
Hello fellow CFPA Members:
In This Issue
Happy Labor Day!
September Virtual
Lunch Bingo
Notary Signing Agent
NALA News
Declarations for
2021 BOD
I can't believe it is September already. I hope everyone
is still doing well and staying safe. It is definitely a
hectic and scary time with children going back to school
either face-to-face or at home virtually/distance
learning. CFPA has been hosting some really great
virtual events the last several months and we hope that
you have been taking advantage of them in hopes that
it will help you destress, unwind a little, laugh and just
have fun networking with others in the same
circumstances.
This month we have two (2) new "Paralegals with a
Purpose" virtual roundtable discussions set for
September 14th and 28th both via Zoom at 7:00 p.m.
the flyer for these events is below in the
newsletter. This is a benefit for CFPA members
Amended Public
Relations Report
Paralegals with a
Purpose
CFPA on the Web
CLE Corner
October Membership
Mixer
Remote Online
Notarization
From the Editor
Membership Corner
Upcoming Events
Membership Corner
NEW ACTIVE
MEMBER:
only. We are looking to the membership for suggested
topics and panel speakers. As long as there are topics
and panelists we will hold the virtual roundtable bi-
monthly or monthly.
Continuing on the virtual path we have transitioned all
area luncheons to virtual and will be hosting another
Virtual Lunch Bingo on September 10th which will be
sponsored by CFPA Patron, S.K.I.
Investigations. This is a FREE event and is open to
CFPA Members and Non-Members.
We held our Virtual Membership Mixer on August 26th
where we played seven (7) rounds of Bingo for our
charity this year, USO of Central Florida and raised over
$300.00!! A huge thank you to our Patron sponsors for
this event Northstar Legal and
S.K.I. Investigations, for the awesome prizes for
each round.
There is still time to get your Declarations for Candidacy
in for a position on the 2021 Board of
Directors. Deadline to submit your Declaration is
September 15, 2020.
We hope to see you at our September virtual
events. As always the Board of Directors and
Stephanie Eden,
FRP
Juanita Williams,
FRP
For Membership
Information and
Application CLICK
HERE
ALREADY A
MEMBER?? If you
have recently
changed jobs,
moved or just have
a new email
address, PLEASE
make sure that you
update your
membership
records by notifying
CFPA's Membership
Committee at:
Committee Chairs are available to answer any of your
questions. Stay safe out there!!
Sincerely,
Marisa Green, ACP, FRP
CFPA President - 2020
Happy Labor Day ...
Summer's final fling has arrived in the form of Labor
Day. Yes, most of us get the day off, but this holiday
triggers mixed emotions. While summer still has 21
calendar days left, it's time to get serious. School's
starting and there's a sense that summer vacation is
over. So what's behind Labor Day - and how did it earn
a place as a federal holiday?
Let's take a look.
WHAT IS THE MEANING OF LABOR DAY?
Labor Day is a United States national holiday, honoring
working people, their contributions, achievements and
Membership@cfpain
c.org.
Quick Links
Apply for Membership
More About Us
CFPA Events
9/10/20 CFPA Virtual
Lunch Bingo
9/14/20 Paralegal
Round Table
9/15/20 Deadline to
Submit Declarations
9/28/20 Paralegal
Round Table
10/23/20 CFPA
Membership Mixer
sacrifices in pursuit of national prosperity and well-
being. Do you get weekends off work? Lunch breaks?
Paid vacation? An eight-hour work day? Social security?
If you said "yes" to any of these questions, you can
thank labor unions and the U.S. labor movement for it.
Years of hard-fought battles (and the ensuing legislation
they inspired) resulted in many of the most basic
benefits we enjoy at our jobs today . On the first
Monday in September, we take the day off to celebrate
Labor Day and reflect on the American worker's
contributions to our country.
An extra big shout out to all the "essential workers"
who have been working so hard during this
pandemic!! Through all of your hard work, long hours,
dedication and patience with the community at large,
you deserve a medal!!
2020 Board of
Directors
President
Marisa Green, ACP
CFPAPresident@cfp
ainc.org
Vice
President/President
Elect 2021
Yolanda Fuhrmann,
FRP
CFPA's Virtual Lunch Bingo ...
Thank you to our sponsor for this month's Virtual
Lunch Bingo - S.K.I. Investigations!!
VicePresident@cfpai
nc.org
Secretary
Iris F. Walker, FRP
Secretary@cfpainc.
org
Treasurer
Roger Smith, FRP
Treasurer@cfpainc.
org
NALA Liaison
Julie McLean, CP,
FRP
Nalaliaison@cfpainc
.org
Parliamentarian
Kristina Rodriguez
Parliamentarian@cf
painc.org
Notary Signing Agent/Loan Signing Agent ...
Where Loan Signing Agent Work Comes From
By: Brenda Stone
Recently, I have observed that there is a bit of
confusion among new notaries regarding where real
estate and loan signing work comes from and how to
connect into that flow. Below is a list of sources of work
for real estate deals and loan signings. I've tried to put
the sources in order from most common to least
Directors:
Sara Ferguson, CP,
FRP
rg
Leslie M. Norton,
ACP, FRP
rg
common. Hopefully, this will help clarify where loan
signing and real estate work comes from and how it
gets to notaries.
PLATFORMS
Platforms are not hiring you or paying you. A platform
is a website that acts as an exchange where hiring
parties see notaries' profiles and can text out a notice of
assignment to hundreds of notaries in a certain area. A
platform automates the process and notaries are
assigned quicker, presumably.
These websites are used by different types of hiring
parties, for instance, both title companies and signing
services use platforms to find notaries for their
assignments. Notaries do not pay to put their names on
a platform. The companies that use these websites pay
an amount per job to use them. Platform sites in
existence that I am aware of
are: SigningOrder.com, NotaryDash.com,
and SnapDocs.com.
Keep in mind that platforms aren't working for you, you
are not their client, so it is doubtful that complaints
from notaries to the platform will create must interest
by the platform. Platforms are working for the parties
Cassie D. Snyder,
ACP, FRP
rg
Lora Trowell, FRP
rg
CFPA's 2020 Charity
who are paying them to use the platform to hire
notaries.
• Pros - Offers of work seem to come more
regularly. It's another place to advertise without
having to pay. You are exposed to many more
companies.
• Cons - Payments offered to notaries are lower
than via other methods, but notaries can
counter-offer. Everything is done by text
message and email, so if you prefer phone calls
and voices, you won't like it.
SIGNING SERVICES
Signing services take orders from title companies and
distribute them to notaries. They may do this through a
platform, through the use of their own private notary
database, or by relying on an online directory
like NotaryRotary.com.
The signing service pays the notary.
• Pros - For new notaries, signing service work is
ideal because there is usually a helpful person
who can walk you through problems that come
up without having to go directly to the title
company or lender. As long as signing services
pay my fee, I am happy to work for them,
although some notaries are quite negative about
these types of companies. I say remain
professional, just say "no" and let other notaries
100% OF ALL MONEY
DONATED to CFPA on
behalf of a charitable
fundraising event
goes directly to the
charity. CFPA retains
$0 and, in most cases,
adds money from our
operating budget to
supplement donations
received for each
charity supported.
CFPA Committees:
do what works for them. You never know how
speaking publicly in a negative manner about a
company can affect you in five years. People
move on to other jobs. Maintain professionalism
in all of your relationships.
• Cons - Fees are lower and often come slower
than when working for title companies.
TITLE COMPANIES
Title companies provide title insurance and facilitate the
closing process. These businesses work differently from
state to state. For instance, the way things are done in
California and Arizona is not the same as the way things
are done in Texas or New York. In small towns in
Texas, for instance, title companies close their own
loans using their employees. They may not use notary
signing agents and prefer to handle their deals
internally. However, this is a foreign concept to notaries
from California where there are not only title companies
to work for, but also escrow companies.
To find notaries, title companies may use a platform like
those mentioned above, the company's database of
notaries, or a directory like NotaryRotary.com. To
develop a list of title company clients from whom you
receive work directly, you will need to have a marketing
strategy of direct solicitation or have someone to refer
you to that office.
Continuing Legal
Education
Committee Chair:
Sara Ferguson, CP,
FRP
rg
Membership
Committee Chair:
Cassie Snyder, ACP,
FRP
Membership@cfpain
c.org
• Pros - Fees are better. No hand holding
(usually). Payments come faster.
• Cons - You are expected to know how to handle
most of the jobs you receive, be experienced,
careful, and 99% error free.
LAW OFFICES
There are some title companies and lenders whose
deals are funneled through law offices. Theses types of
assignments are all over the place as far as fees,
payment terms, etc. However, I am mentioning them
because you may receive calls and assignments from
them. There is nothing to be suspicious of. But I can't
really give you any more insight because I don't have
enough feedback from my own experiences or from
other notaries.
LENDERS
Lenders generally turn the loan over to a title company
to facilitate the process of closing. However, on
occasion, you may be called directly by a lender to go to
a home or office to meet with a borrower. This is rare
but it does happen. Make sure when you take an
assignment from a lender, that you know where to send
your invoice. Otherwise, the invoice may wind up in a
dark hole because there is not an established system
for payment to the notary. I remember doing one
Public Relations
Committee Chairs:
Lora Trowell, FRP
Yolanda Fuhrmann,
FRP
Publicrelations@cfp
ainc.org
Community Service
Committee Chair:
Peonca Grier, CP, FRP
CommunityService
@cfpainc.org
Student Relations
Committee Chair:,
ACP, FRP
Leslie Norton
rg
directly for a certain national lender years ago. It took
many calls to get paid. They kept saying, "But, that file
has already been closed."
INDIVIDUALS
Some title companies occasionally send out a "mail-
away" package. This means they send the documents
to the borrower and tell the borrower to find a notary.
The borrower pays the notary. Personally, I do not do a
"loan signing" when this type of call comes in. I tell the
caller to pull out all the documents to be notarized and
have them ready. I do not go through the other
documents. I perform as a notary, only, charging only
for the notarial acts and a mobile notary fee, if any.
OTHERS
Occasionally, notaries report that they have been called
by a real estate agent to handle a small package in the
agent's office. Other types of stakeholders in the
mortgage lending and real estate landscape could also
call to schedule your time. It will pay to answer your
phone to all callers, even if you do not recognize the
number. Several years back, I received calls from an
oil and gas company to handle the execution of
purchase loans for manufactured homes. Again, in
Social Media
Committee Chair:
Yolanda Furhmann,
FRP
Socialmedia@cfpain
c.org
Newsletter - Carpe
Diem
Cassie Snyder, ACP,
FRP
Paralegal
Regulation & Ethics
Committee Chair:
Julie McLean, CP
Nalaliaison@cfpainc
.org
these situations, make sure you know who will handle
the invoice for your services.
Article reprinted from:
https://notary.net/where-notary-signing-agent-work-
comes-from/
NALA News ...
Upcoming Live NALA Webinars
Job Bank
Committee Chair:
Leslie Norton, ACP,
FRP
Newsletter
Recognition:
Immigration Law Sept. 17th at 12:00 pm CT 1.5
CLE Hours
This area of law is constantly changing due to the
current pandemic, recent court decisions, and a volatile
political climate. This live webinar will discuss
immigration topics such as the H1B employment
immigration petition, and travel bans, the B-5 visa.
Social Media Ethics Sept. 24th at 1:00 pm CT 1.0
CLE Hours--ETHICS
This webinar will address the current social media
trends and the risks involved with social networking.
The webinar will review the American Bar Association
Rules of Professional Conduct as they apply to social
media. Also, ways to correctly obtain web evidence will
be discussed.
The Successful Paralegal in the Digital Age Sept.
30th 12:00 pm CT 1 CLE Hour-NONSUBSTANTIVE
Learn technology tips and tricks in Word, Excel,
Outlook, and Adobe in this webinar. In addition, this
session will point out things to keep in mind when
working in eDiscovery.
Self Help NALA Webinars
Leadership Webinars
Constant Contact
2018 All Star Award
Winner
www.cfpainc.org
Post Office Box 1107
NALA also offers several on demand sessions that can
help you to improve your leadership and organizational
skills. Such webinars include Assertive Skills, Critical
Thinking Skills, The Art of Communication, and Creative
Problem Solving.
Complimentary Webinars for Active NALA
Members
If you are an Active NALA Member, the following on
demand sessions are FREE:
• Dealing with Difficult People;
• Managing Stress in a Turbulent World;
• The Science of Living in Balance;
• Scholl Safety-from the Schoolhouse to the
Courthouse; and
• Using Coaching Skills to Improve Communication.
Looking for a new job? Did you know that NALA
offers a Career Center? The Career Center lists job
postings and very helpful information such as
interviewing tips, resume writing tips, how to start a
new career, how to search for a paralegal position, and
the importance of networking.
For more information about webinars or educational
sessions or to sign up for any of these classes, please
go NALA's website at www.nala.org.
Orlando,
Florida 32802
407-672-6372
Promoting
Paralegal
Excellence Through
Active
Engagement.
Celebrating the
Professional
Standard in Central
Florida Since 1983.
NALA Certification
The test results for the 2020 CP Skills Exam shall be
released 6-8 weeks from July 31st. NALA will notify all
examinees by email. The Knowledge Exam is given
year-round. PSI has reopened some testing sites. To
check PSI testing site availability, go to:
https://www.psionline.com. Can't find a testing site
close to you? Your workplace may be eligible. Email
[email protected] and NALA will send you the testing
documents. October 1-31, 2020 is the next Skills
Exam testing window.
Looking to be more involved with NALA or with
CFPA? Why don't you run for a position on CFPA's
Board of Directors? Sadly, my two-year tenure as
CFPA's NALA Liaison ends in December of this year. I
thoroughly enjoyed being the NALA Liaison. NALA and
CFPA are wonderful organizations made up of terrific,
friendly, amazing, devoted, and motivated people. It
was an honor representing CFPA and getting to know
everyone at NALA. I would love to discuss more about
being the NALA Liaison with you and am happy to help
the new NALA Liaison with the transition.
As always, if you have a NALA-related question, please
don't hesitate to contact me at [email protected].
Julie McLean, CP, FRP
NALA Liaison
CFPA is Seeking Active Member Participation ...
Declarations of Candidacy to run for a position on
the 2021 Board of Directors are due by September
15th!! This is a great way to get involved and make a
difference in the leadership and future of the
Association. We hope you will join the team!!
You can email the Elections Committee at
[email protected] if you would like to have a
Declaration form emailed to you.
Amended Public Relations Report ...
If you were not able to attend the Virtual Membership
Mixer and Bingo on August 26th you really missed
out!! It was so much fun! Thank you again to our
amazing sponsors Northstar Legal and S.K.I.
Investigations for knocking it out of the park with
their prizes!! We also had a special appearance by my
grandson Ayden who helped call out some of the Bingo
numbers!! We had a record number of 7 rounds of
Bingo AND we raised $310.00 for our charity - USO of
Central Florida which will go towards their Christmas
event Operation Stuff a Stocking for children of our
local service men and women.
The big Bingo winners of the night were:
Round 1 $50 Amazon card - Jennifer Finch
Round 2 $25 Visa gift card - Peonca Grier
Round 3 $25 Visa gift card - Caroline Wilkerson
Round 4 $25 Visa gift card - Sara Ferguson
Round 5 $25 Visa gift card - Denise Marsters
Round 6 Gift Basket (value $100.00) - Stephanie Eden
Round 7 $25 Visa gift card - Iris Walker
Way to go guys! I hope you all had as much fun
as Ayden and I did!!!
Our Fall Virtual Mixer will be on October 23rd and we
have some really fun things planned: Costume contest,
Pumpkin carving contest (done prior to event) and we
will be doing trivia throughout the night. We have a
great sponsor for this event Language PickUp and will
have some awesome prizes, especially for those who
participate in the costume and/or pumpkin carving
contests!!
We encourage all of our CFPA members to get involved.
Let's join together and make CFPA the best it can be!!
CFPA needs volunteers like you to continue to run
smoothly. Joining a committee provides opportunities to
meet people, learn skills, and represents that you are
interested in leadership. We have something for
everyone. The available committees are CLE,
membership, student relations, public relations, holiday
party, social media, newsletter, and community service.
If you are interested, email us at
[email protected], and we'll help find the right
fit for you.
Are you making the most of your CFPA membership by
being a part of the CFPA's Members Only Group? As
a benefit of your membership with CFPA, you are
eligible to join CFPA's Members Only Group through
Groups.io. This is a forum where you
can post questions to other CFPA members such as
referrals to other attorneys in other practice areas, or if
you need an expert witness and are seeking a
recommendation, or if you are seeking a certain form
that you don't have. All you have to do is post to our
CFPA Members Only Group. We also
provide information about our events, such as
networking luncheons, CLE seminars, social events and
mixers, community service opportunities, job
opportunities and much more. Don't miss out on this
amazing membership benefit!! For more information on
how you can become a part of this CFPA Members Only
Group and receive an invitation to join, please contact
CFPA's Membership Committee at
Remember that you can stay connected with CFPA on
social media to get the latest on what we're up to! You
can "Like" us on Facebook at Central Florida Paralegal
Association, Inc.
(https://www.facebook.com/CFPAINC1983) and follow
us on Instagram at @cfpa_inc to stay in the loop with
all of the upcoming CFPA events.
CFPA Public Relations Committee:
Lora Trowell, FRP
Yolanda Fuhrmann, FRP
Co-Chairs
Paralegals with a Purpose Roundtable
Discussions ...
CFPA would like to offer a virtual space for paralegals of
all backgrounds and levels of experience to participate
in round table discussions to provide insight,
experience, suggestions and even just a safe space to
vent on a variety of topics.
As we start this new segment of virtual round table
discussions, we will need your help and
participation. We are looking for topics of interest to
the membership as well as panelist.
If you have a topic you would like to see discussed by
seasoned paralegals or if you would like to be added to
our list of panelist please email Membership
Chair, Cassie Snyder, ACP, FRP
Also if you are interested in attending either or both of
these events below please RSVP to the Membership
Committee - [email protected] by no later than
1 day prior to the event to insure that you receive the
Zoom link information. Thank you.
CFPA on the Web ...
You can find CFPA on these social networking
sites:
Linked In
CLE Corner ...
UPCOMING CLE ...
The CLE Committee is working hard on future
seminars to be held virtually due to COVID-19,
our "new normal" for the time being. Thank you
for your understanding and patience during this
time as we work towards providing you with
quality CLEs that are on trend and relevant to the
legal field.
If you have any suggestions or if you would like to
present a virtual seminar please contact the CLE
Committee at [email protected]
CFPA's October Membership Mixer ...
We are so excited to host this event! It is going
to be so much fun! We are partnering with our
Patron member, Language Pickup who will be
sponsoring this event. Please be on the look out
for an Evite from the Public Relations Committee
or feel free to RSVP to
Remote Online Notarization Law ...
Five Important Things Everyone Must Know Right
Now About Florida's
New Remote Online Notarization Law
By: Diane Vidal, Esq.
It's official. The State of Florida has reached the future.
No, we don't have flying cars or NASA access to
weekend trips to Mars, but Florida has something just
as futuristic and innovative: Remote Online
Notarization!
Effective January 1, 2020, the State of Florida revised
its notary public laws to include interactive audio-video
conference to qualify under the "personal appearance"
requirement. Remote Online Notarization (RON) is
where a signer and notary public use audio and video
communication to notarize a signer's electronic
signature on electronic documents. What this means is
online notarization has been redefined to include the
performance of a notarial act using electronic means
where the signor appears before the notary public by
means of audio-video communication technology. So,
while the notary and the signer see and hear each other
via their computer screens, they no longer have to be in
each other's actual physical presence.
Can you imagine? We are about to embark in world
where contractual notarizations are performed online -
from the comfort of our very own homes. Wills can be
signed without an elderly signor having to leave his
bedroom. Real estate closings will occur without the
buyer, seller or mortgage lender ever having to
exchange a handshake. The possibilities are endless and
with all of this new age technology and groundbreaking
developments, it can really force us to wonder if we will
ever see another human being in the flesh -again. But,
let's not be so dramatic - at least not yet.
For now, there are five very important things we all
must know about Florida's RON law.
• Not just any Florida notary is authorized to
notarize documents online. After complying with
all of Florida's required prerequisites such as
complying with a state-approved two-hour RON
course and payment of registration fees, an
existing Florida notary public must register with
the State as an online notary in order to be
permitted to notarize documents online.
• Identity proofing is made possible only through
state qualified RON service providers. The RON
notary must verify credentials utilizing
technological credential analysis and identity
proofing via the presentation of a remote
presentation of a government issued id,
credential analysis of the id and identity proofing
in the form of knowledge-based authentication.
This is all made possible with the assistance of
state qualified and approved RON service
provider only.
• Yes, documents requiring a witnesses' signature -
even if the witness is physically remote from the
signor - is possible using RON. Although there are
added protections when a document requires a
witness, a document requiring a witness'
signature is now possible online where a witness
can be in the physical presence of the signor or
remote from the signor so long as the witness
conforms with the statutory requirements for
using the audio-video communication technology.
• Remote online Real Estate Closings are now
possible. Consent from all parties to a real estate
transaction (seller, buyer/borrower, lender) must
be obtained prior to execution and notarization of
documents electronically and the mortgage
lender must approve and consent to the use of
RON. Otherwise, the real estate transaction may
be invalid.
• The notary block has changed. The notary public
must select whether the signer appeared by
means of physical presence or online
notarization. While failure to comply with
procedures may not impair validity of
notarization, it may be voidable where evidence
can be introduced to establish violations such as
fraud, forgery, impersonation, duress, incapacity,
undue influence, minority, illegality,
unconscionability. The notary block should look
something like this:
STATE OF FLORIDA
COUNTY OF _______
The foregoing instrument was acknowledged before me
by means of [] physical presence or [] online
notarization, this .... day of........, ...(year)..., by
...(name of person acknowledging).......(Signature of
Notary Public - State of Florida)... ...(Print, Type, or
Stamp Commissioned Name of Notary Public)...
Personally Known ........ OR Produced
Identification........ Type of Identification
Produced........................
Article reprinted from the website of Chiumento
Dwyer Hertel Grant:
www.legalteamforlife.com
From the Editor ...
Would you like to write an article for
the Carpe Diem?? If so please send
me a draft. We would love to
include articles from our members in
our monthly issues. Also if you see
any any legal related articles or
topics of interest that you would like
to see covered in the next issue of
the Carpe Diem please feel free to
share them with me.
Article submissions by CFPA Members on legal related
subjects are published upon approval and at the
discretion of the Editor.
HAVE YOU MISSED AN ISSUE OF THE CARPE
DIEM?? Feel free to email me at
[email protected] and let me know which issue
you would like.
Here is a link to some of our archived issues from March
2011 through January 2015:
Carpe Diem Archived Issues
Cassie
Snyder,
ACP, FRP -
Editor
Central Florida Paralegal Association, P.O. Box 1107, Orlando, FL 32802-1107
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