Combating Notario Fraud: L.A. County to require licenses for immigration consultants
Shiela Kuehl
Notario fraud long has plagued many big cities with large Latina/o immigrant populations. As Abby Sewell of the Los Angeles Times reports, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors earlier this week voted to require immigration consultants working in unincorporated areas of the county to be licensed. The consultants, generally known as “notarios,” are not attorneys. But some offer legal services and charge high rates.
Because notary publics in Latin America are roughly equivalent to lawyers, immigrants often do not realize that in the United States they are only authorized to witness signatures and authenticate documents, said Supervisor Hilda Solis, who proposed the enforcement program along with Supervisor Sheila Kuehl. “I’ve spoken with numerous families who have been for years paying dollar after dollar without making any progress on their immigration matters,” Solis said. “When these families finally understand that they have been defrauded, it is often too late for them to make a report about it.”
KJ