www.chron.com

Aug. 4, 2005, 11:53PM



Notarios publicos exploit name
Immigrants are warned they're not lawyers here, unlike in some Latin countries
By LORI RODRIGUEZ

Harris County family court judges are warning their Spanish-speaking litigants not to use the notario publico services in Hispanic neighborhoods for preparing legal documents.

For years, some Hispanic notaries public have exploited immigrants who believe notarios publicos in the U.S. are like the top-tier attorneys who carry the title in Latin American countries. In this country, a notary is simply someone licensed to formally witness the signing of legal documents.

"There's confusion about the status of who these folks are and how they fit in the legal system. A lot of the Hispanic people think the title gives them an aura of credibility. But a lot of the paper being generated by these nonlawyers is just trash," says State District Judge Doug Warne, administrative judge for the Harris County family courts.

When litigants present inadequate pleadings, motions, orders and other documents, they are forced to make repeat appearances until they get it right, he said.

"If you spend too much time hand-holding, everyone has to wait. It disrupts the court schedule. If we ignore the problem with the product and we don't force them to correct it, then the orders might not be enforceable."


Preying on immigrants
Immigration and civil rights lawyer Isaias Torres, has long crusaded against notarios publicos who masquerade as lawyers. Historically, they have preyed upon vulnerable new immigrants desperately seeking legal status, he says.

"The problem's been increasing over the last year or so with everything going on in Washington over immigration," says Torres.

"These notarios are branching out. They've gotten brazen and bold."

Manuel Soliz, whose East End practice draws a heavy stream of Latinos, says improper work by notarios now can have severe consequences, for them and their clients.

A 2001 law prohibits licensed notaries from filling out immigration papers for clients. The first offense is a misdemeanor, the second, a felony.

"Also," Soliz said, "mistakes in immigration documents don't result in just a slap on the wrist or a little fine for the immigrant. More and more, these mistakes lead straight to deportation hearings."

Since assuming office in December 2002, Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott has shut down two dozen major notary operations across the state for violations of the new law. Last September, Abbott won a $1 million verdict against a Weslaco business that offered unauthorized legal services to hundreds of immigrants. The verdict included over $900,000 in restitution to clients.


'Means so much more'
"In Mexico and some other Latin countries, a notario publico is a very special lawyer who has quasi-judicial authority. It's a cream-of-the-crop lawyer appointed by state governors," says civil attorney Jacob Monte, whose clientele is heavily immigrant.

"These fake lawyers capitalize on the fact that the word means so much more in other countries."