Badania uwierzytelnionej notarialnie kserokopii dokumentu na przykładzie свидительства o рождении (świadectwa urodzenia)

Abstract

This article attempts to address certain aspects of forensic-legal examination of the authenticity of a document on the basis of a notarized photocopy (certified copy). The article outlines the essence of the notarial act – regulated in Article 98 of the Polish Notary Public Law – of certifying the conformity of a copy, extract or photocopy with a presented document and the dangers that may arise from regarding a notarized photocopy of a presented document as a photocopy of an authentic document. The role of the notary in terms of document authenticity verification has been signaled. From a forensic point of view, the lack of evidentiary equivalence between an original document and a certified photocopy in the process of testing the authenticity of a document was emphasized. Based on examples from the practice of an expert witness, the possibility of identifying a forgery on the basis of a notarized photocopy of a document свидительствo o рождении is presented. The authors attempt to formulate several postulates concerning the making of photocopies of documents and their subsequent notarization.