Chương III Luật Công chứng 2006: Tổ chức hành nghề công chứng

Chapter III

NOTARY PRACTISING ORGANIZATIONS

Article 23. Forms of notary practising organizations:

1. Public Notary Offices.

2. Private notary offices.

Article 24. Public Notary Offices

1. A Public Notary Office shall be established pursuant to a decision of a provincial people's committee.

2. A Public Notary Office shall have its own head office, seal and bank account and shall be a professional unit under the Department of Justice.

The legal representative of a Public Notary Office shall be the head of such Public Notary Office. The head of a Public Notary Office shall be a notary who is appointed by the chairman of the provincial people's committee.

The Government shall provide specific regulations on the financial regime and seals of Public Notary Offices.

3. The name of a Public Notary Office shall include a number referring to the consecutive date order of its establishment, and also the name of the province or city under central authority where such Office was established.

Article 25. Establishment of Public Notary Offices

1. The Department of Justice shall prepare a plan for establishment of Public Notary Office/s on the basis of the local notarization needs, and submit such plan to the provincial people's committee for its consideration and decision. The plan shall specify the necessity for establishment, the proposed organizational structure, personnel, location of office, and conditions regarding physical facilities of the Public Notary Office; together with an implementation plan.

2. Within thirty (30) days from the date of a decision on establishment of a Public Notary Office, the Department of Justice shall publish the following details in three consecutive issues of a central or local daily newspaper:

(a) Name and address of the Public Notary Office;

(b) Serial number and date of the establishment decision, and date of commencement of operation of the Public Notary Office.

3. If the provincial people's committee decides to change the name or office location of a Public Notary Office, the Department of Justice shall publish such changes in accordance with clause 2 of this article.

Article 26. Private notary offices

1.  A private notary office shall be established by one or more notaries.

A private notary office established by one notary shall be organized and operate in the form of a private enterprise. A private notary office established by two or more notaries shall be organized and operate in the form of a partnership.

The legal representative of a private notary office shall be the head of such private notary office. The head of a private notary office shall be a notary.

2. A private notary office shall have its own head office, seal and bank account and shall operate on the principle of financial self-control by using contributions from notaries, notarization remuneration and other legitimate income.

The Government shall provide specific regulations on the seals of private notary offices.

3. The name of a private notary office shall be selected by the notary or notaries but must contain the phrase “Notary Office” and must not be identical to or cause confusion with the name of other registered notary practising organizations; and must not contain any words or symbols in breach of the historical and cultural traditions and ethics of the Vietnamese people.

Article 27. Establishment and operational registration of private notary offices

1. A notary or notaries who wish to set up a private notary office must prepare a file and send it to the provincial people's committee. A file shall comprise the following:

(a) An application for establishment of a private notary office;

(b) A plan for establishment of the private notary office specifying the necessity for its establishment and the proposed organizational structure, personnel, head office and other conditions regarding physical facilities of the private notary office; together with an implementation plan;

(c) Copies of decisions on appointment of the notary or notaries.

2. The provincial people's committee shall make a decision approving establishment of a private notary office within twenty (20) working days from the date of receipt of a complete file requesting such establishment. In a case of a refusal, a written notice must be served specifying the reason, and an applicant whose request is refused shall have the right to lodge a complaint in accordance with law.

3. The private notary office must register its operation with the Department of Justice in the locality in which it is permitted to operate within ninety (90) working days from the date of receipt of the decision approving its establishment. In order to register its operation, the private notary office must provide an application for operational registration and a document evidencing it has a head office in the locality where it is permitted to operate.

The Department of Justice shall issue a certificate of registered operation within fifteen (15) days from the date of receipt of the relevant documents requesting registration. In a case of a refusal, a written notice must be served specifying the reason, and an applicant whose request for registration is refused shall have the right to lodge a complaint in accordance with law.

A private notary office shall only be permitted to commence operation after a certificate of registered operation has been issued by the Department of Justice.

4. The Department of Justice shall revoke the certificate of registered operation of any private notary office which fails to operate within six (6) months of the date of issuance of such certificate or which fails to operate for a period of three consecutive months.

5. The provincial people's committee shall revoke the decision approving establishment of the private notary office of any private notary office which fails to register its operation within ninety (90) working days from the date of receipt of such decision or whose certificate of registered operation is revoked.

Article 28. Change of registered operational contents of a private notary office

A private notary office must send a written notice to the Department of Justice where its operation is registered if such office changes its head office, the list of its notaries or the names on such list.

A private notary office shall be re-issued with its certificate of registered operation if such office changes its head office or its name.

Article 29. Disclosure of information about registered operational contents

The Department of Justice shall, within ten (10) working days from the date of issuance or re-issuance of a certificate of registered operation as a result of a change of head office or name of the private notary office, send written notice thereof to the provincial tax office, statistical office and police office, and to the people's committee of the district, town or provincial city, and to the people's committee of the commune, ward or township where the head office of such private notary office is located.

Article 30. Publication of registered operational contents of private notary offices

1. A private notary office must publish the following details in three consecutive issues of a central or local newspaper within thirty (30) days from the date of issuance of its certificate of registered operation:

(a) Name and head office address of the private notary office;

(b) Full names of the notaries and serial numbers of the decisions appointing them to practise in the private notary office;

(c) Serial number and date of issuance of the certificate of registered operation, the location where the operation was registered and the date of commencement of operation.

2. In a case of re-issuance of a certificate of registered operation as a result of a change of head office or name, a private notary office must publish the registered operational contents set out in the reissued certificate in accordance with clause 1 of this article.

Article 31. Rights of notary practising organizations:

1. To recruit staff to work for the organization.

2. To collect notarization fees and remuneration and other fees.

3. Other rights stipulated in this Law and other relevant laws.

Article 32. Obligations of notary practising organizations:

1. To display at the head office the working days and hours, notarization procedures, notarization fees and remuneration, and internal rules on receiving applicants for notarization.

2. To follow the working days and hours of State administrative bodies.

3. To comply with the law on labour, tax, finance and statistics.

4. To comply with requests from competent State bodies concerning reports, checks and inspections.

5. To pay damages for loss caused by a notary of the notary practising organization to any applicant for notarization.

6. To archive notarization files.

7. To purchase professional indemnity insurance for the notaries of the notary practising organization.

8. Other obligations stipulated in this Law and other relevant laws.

Article 33. Dissolution of Public Notary Offices

1. Where it is deemed unnecessary to maintain a Public Notary Office, the Department of Justice shall prepare a plan for dissolution of such Office and report it to the provincial people's committee for the latter's consideration and decision.

A Public Notary Office shall only be dissolved after all its liabilities have been settled, after procedures for termination of labour contracts with employees have been completed, and after all previously accepted requests for notarization have been performed.

2. The Department of Justice shall publish notice of dissolution in three consecutive editions of a central or local newspaper within fifteen (15) days from the date of issuance of a decision by the provincial people's committee to dissolve a Public Notary Office.

Article 34. Termination of operation of a private notary office

1. The operation of a private notary office shall be terminated in the following circumstances:

(a) Upon voluntary termination.

(b) Upon revocation of its certificate of registered operation due to a breach of law by the private notary office, or if such office no longer has a notary as a result of dismissal.

2. In a case of termination pursuant to clause 1(a) of this article, the private notary office must report in writing to the Department of Justice where its operation was registered, at least thirty (30) days prior to the proposed date of termination.

The private notary office shall be liable to settle all of its liabilities, to complete procedures to terminate labour contracts with its employees, to perform all previously accepted requests for notarization, and to publish the proposed date of termination of its operation in three consecutive issues of a local or central newspaper.

The Department of Justice shall provide a written report on the termination of operation of the private notary office to the bodies stipulated in article 29 of this Law.

3. In a case of termination pursuant to clause 1(b) of this article, the Department of Justice shall provide a written report on such termination to the bodies stipulated in article 29 of this Law within seven (7) working days from the date of revocation of the certificate of registered operation.

The private notary office shall be liable to settle all of its liabilities, to complete procedures to terminate labour contracts with its employees, to return files to applicants in the case of accepted requests for notarization which remain uncompleted, and to publish notice of termination of its operation in three consecutive issues of a local or central newspaper.