Multiple Jurats in a Judicial Affidavit (Philippines)
A doctrinal, procedural, and practical guide
1. What is a judicial affidavit?
| Element | Source | Key points |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | A.M. No. 12-8-8-SC, §1 (“Judicial Affidavit Rule,” effective 1 Jan 2013) | A written, sworn, question-and-answer statement that replaces a witness’s direct testimony in trials, quasi-judicial bodies, and certain investigative proceedings. |
| Form | §2 | Must be in a language known to the witness; signed by the witness and the lawyer on every page; ends with a jurat before an authorized officer. |
| Purpose | Preamble & §5 | Speeds up trials by transforming oral testimony into a pre-filed affidavit subject only to cross-examination. |
2. What is a jurat?
| Feature | Source | Explanation |
|---|---|---|
| Legal nature | 2004 Rules on Notarial Practice (“RNP”), §1(b)[7] | A notarial act in which an individual swears or affirms that the contents of a document are true and signs it in the notary’s presence. |
| Minimum contents | RNP §6 | Date, place, notarizing officer’s signature and seal, name of affiant, document title/description, number of pages, identification of affiant. |
| Effect | Evidence Law | Converts a private writing into a public document, self-authenticating under Rule 132 §19(f), but still subject to cross-examination in judicial-affidavit form. |
3. Why do multiple jurats appear—and should they?
| Scenario | Is a second jurat allowed? | Rationale / Risk |
|---|---|---|
| A. Multiple pages of the same affidavit | No. One jurat at the end suffices. | RNP does not require a jurat per page. The affiant’s initials and the notary’s marginal signature/seal may authenticate page continuity. |
| B. Several witnesses share one “composite” affidavit | Discouraged. Best practice: one witness = one judicial affidavit = one jurat. | The Judicial Affidavit Rule contemplates individual testimony. Combining witnesses complicates cross-examination and notarial record-keeping. |
| C. Co-affiants on a single instrument (e.g., two corporate officers narrating the same facts) | Permissible if each affiant signs under a separate jurat block on the same document. | Each oath is distinct; the notary must make a separate register entry for each jurat (§2, RNP). |
| D. Re-execution after correction/errata | Avoid dual jurats on one copy. Withdraw the earlier copy and execute a fresh affidavit with a single jurat. | Two jurats with different dates on the same text raise authenticity and tampering issues; may expose the notary to administrative liability. |
| E. Sequential notarization by two officers (e.g., first before a notary, then before a consular official abroad) | Not recommended. Only the first valid jurat is legally material. | A second jurat adds no probative value and may be struck out as surplusage. |
4. Governing rules and doctrines
A.M. No. 12-8-8-SC (Judicial Affidavit Rule)
- §2(e): affidavit “shall contain a jurat duly executed.”
- §4: parties file and serve the affidavit and its attachments at least five days before trial.
2004 Rules on Notarial Practice
- §2(b): notary must keep a separate notarial-register entry per jurat.
- §6(d): notary must indicate the exact page count covered by the jurat.
Rules of Court
- Rule 132 §23: public documents (i.e., duly notarized) are admissible without further proof.
- Rule 132 §30: adverse party may test the affidavit’s veracity through cross-examination.
Key jurisprudence (administrative cases vs. notaries)
Case (A.C.) Gist relevant to multiple jurats Re: Petition for Revocation of Notarial Commission of Atty. Palma (26 Apr 2016) Notary disciplined for attaching two jurats to a single affidavit lacking new signatures. Nunga v. Viray (A.C. 5804, 23 Sept 2003, pre-RNP but oft-cited) Reiterated that notarization is not an empty act; must be performed with exactness, or the document loses public character. People v. Diano (G.R. 231122, 15 Jan 2020) Court rejected an affidavit improperly notarized abroad without proper apostille, hinting that formal defects in the jurat vitiate evidentiary weight.
5. Consequences of improper or excess jurats
| Level | Possible sanction / effect |
|---|---|
| Notary public | Suspension or revocation of commission; temporary disqualification from the practice of law (RNP §1). |
| Affidavit/witness | Affidavit may be expunged; witness must give oral testimony, delaying trial; possible exposure to perjury if multiple jurats mask alterations. |
| Counsel | May be cited for delay or bad-faith under §10 of the Judicial Affidavit Rule; may also face contempt. |
| Party | Loss of evidence, adverse inference, or denial of application (e.g., injunction) if reliant on defective affidavit. |
6. Best-practice checklist for lawyers and notaries
- One affidavit, one witness, one jurat.
- Require the witness and counsel to initial every page; notary may stamp and initial margins instead of repeating the jurat.
- Page numbering: “Page __ of __” on each folio, echoed in the notary’s register.
- For multiple affiants, use clearly separated signature blocks, each followed by its own short jurat (date, place, ID), and log each in the register.
- When correcting errors, re-print and re-notarize; do not superimpose a new jurat on old signatures.
- Attach the lawyer’s sworn attestation (required by §4(c) of the Rule) after—never inside—the witness’s jurat.
- If notarizing abroad, comply with the Consular Notarial Regulations or apply the Apostille Convention (since the Philippines acceded in 2019).
- Keep photocopies or digital scans of the notarized affidavit to guard against post-execution insertions.
7. Frequently asked questions
| Q | A |
|---|---|
| May I notarize a single judicial affidavit covering two corporate officers if they narrate the same facts? | Yes, but place two distinct jurats—each officer must swear separately, and you must log two entries in your notarial register. |
| Is it fatal if the notary placed a jurat on both page 3 and page 5? | Usually regarded as an irregularity, not an outright nullity, unless the duplicate jurat hides text inserted between the two swearing dates. The court has discretion to disregard or admit after explanation. |
| Must the lawyer’s attestation be notarized separately? | No. The attestation is itself sworn; it may share the same notary and date, but it is a distinct oath recorded separately. |
| What if the witness signs via videoconference? | The 2020 Interim Rules on Remote Notarization allow e-jurats under stringent identity-verification, archiving, and audiovisual recording requirements. A second “wet-ink” jurat is unnecessary. |
8. Summary
The Philippine legal system demands exactness in notarization. For judicial affidavits, the guiding mantra is “One witness, one oath, one jurat.” Extra jurats serve no useful evidentiary purpose and expose counsel and notary alike to administrative pitfalls. Where several affiants truly need to swear to the same narrative, give each a discreet jurat and a discreet register entry. Otherwise—avoid multiplication and keep the testimonial record clean, singly sworn, and swiftly admissible.