Documents and deadlines
Would have asked for the file's documents and tracked the missing ones, instead of leaving the assistant chasing them by hand.
An accepted offer, a closing date, and nobody at the office
What a receptionist can collect in a professional practice without crossing the line of privilege or giving a single piece of advice.
7 days, 20 answered calls, no card
The practice, the situation, the configuration
A notarial practice with two notaries and one legal assistant. The assistant is on the phone part of the day, but she also prepares deeds, keeps the calendars and follows the land registry: every minute spent repeating opening hours is a minute taken from legal work.
The configuration is the Professional services base, on its own. It answers when the line rings unanswered, identifies the type of file, captures parties and deadlines, and passes it along. No add-on is switched on in this scene.
The call comes in at ten past two on a Wednesday. Both notaries are in a signing; the assistant has stepped out to file documents. A buyer has just had an offer accepted and is looking for a notary for a closing date already set.
What you are looking at
A written exchange, built from the qualification questions, the caller types and the hard limits of the notary preset. It is not the transcript of a call that happened, and no real file served as raw material.
Wednesday, 2:10 p.m. Both notaries in a signing, line forwarded.
ReceptionistRivard and Tremblay notaries, good afternoon. The notary is in a signing; I am taking your call. Your full name and a number to reach you, first.
BuyerMarc Bergeron, 514 555-0119. My offer was just accepted and I need a notary.
ReceptionistCongratulations. What is the address of the property, and what closing date does your purchase agreement set?
BuyerA house in Boucherville. Closing is set for the 28th of next month.
ReceptionistThank you. Who else is on the file — the seller, the broker, and the lender? I take down the names so the notary can check for a conflict before accepting the mandate.
BuyerThe seller is Julie Tremblay, the broker works out of Laval, and my credit union is financing. What are your fees?
ReceptionistI cannot quote them: they depend on your file, and the notary confirms them himself. I also cannot hold the date until he has accepted the mandate. What I am doing: your request goes out as a priority because closing is near, and you get a callback today.
BuyerGood. My broker is the one who gave me your name.
ReceptionistI am noting that — it matters to the practice. Anything else to pass on to the notary before he calls you?
The request arrives with the property address, the closing date, the three other parties named, the referral source and a near-deadline flag. The notary runs the conflict check before calling back, instead of running it live with a client he may not be able to serve.
What is collected, and what happens to it
Seven questions, all of them in the notary preset.
- Full name and callback number, before anything else
- New file or a file already open at the practice
- Type of file — transaction, will and protection mandate, estate, corporate
- For a transaction: the closing date and the property address
- The other parties named: seller, buyer, broker, lender
- Any deadline the caller states, in the words they use
- Who referred the practice, when someone did
The names of the other parties feed the conflict check the notary performs. The receptionist takes no position on it and tells nobody whether a name is already known to the practice.
What is switched on in this scene
The Professional services base, on its own. The three add-ons below would have changed what followed; they are not active here.
What the scene does not show
The limits come from the preset.
- She gives no legal advice and interprets no deed, will or contract
- She quotes no fee that the practice has not published
- She confirms, moves and promises no signing date: the notary alone sets it
- She does not confirm that a person is a client, and reveals the state of no file without verified identity
- She takes no position on a conflict of interest: she captures the names, the notary decides
Where to next
See the page for your practice, or another demo.
An accepted offer, a closing date, and nobody at the office