Notary public and commissioner of oaths services, apostille coordination through Ontario's Official Documents Services, and attested translations — for documents required at home and abroad.
Notarization is the act by which a lawyer, as a notary public, authenticates the signature on a document, the identity of the person signing it, and — where applicable — the truth of the statements made in it. A properly notarized document is admissible in Canadian courts and, following the additional step of apostille, is accepted by most foreign jurisdictions without further legalization.
Avion Law provides the full range of notarial and commissioning services from its Etobicoke office. Whether you need a single document commissioned for use in Ontario or a stack of documents authenticated for use overseas, we can handle the work in-office, explain the process clearly, and coordinate the downstream steps where authentication or apostille is required.
Certification of true copies of original documents, notarization of signatures, notarial certificates for foreign use, and authentication of documents for apostille or consular legalization.
Commissioning of affidavits, statutory declarations, and other sworn statements for use in court proceedings, government applications, and private transactions.
Preparation of documents for the apostille process and submission to Ontario's Official Documents Services — the competent authority for documents issued or notarized in Ontario under the Hague Apostille Convention.
Notarial attestation of translations required for apostille or foreign use, where the underlying document is in a language other than English or French and a certified Canadian translator's certification is not used.
Drafting of affidavits, statutory declarations, consents, powers of attorney, letters of authority, and other documents that require notarization or commissioning — in proper form for the intended use.
For documents destined for countries that are not party to the Hague Apostille Convention, guidance on the additional step of consular legalization at the relevant embassy or consulate in Canada.
The distinction between notarization and commissioning is frequently misunderstood. A commissioner of oaths takes a person's oath or affirmation as to the truth of a statement — most commonly, the oath sworn before an affidavit or statutory declaration is filed. Every Ontario lawyer is a commissioner of oaths by virtue of holding a licence.
A notary public does more. A notary authenticates the signature on a document, certifies true copies of originals, and — unlike a commissioner — affixes a notarial seal that is recognized by foreign governments and used as the basis for apostille. In Ontario, every practising lawyer is also appointed as a notary public.
In practice, most clients who walk into a law office asking for something to be "notarized" need one of three things: a sworn affidavit (commissioning), a certified true copy of an original (notary), or a notarial certificate for use abroad (notary, typically with subsequent apostille). We will determine which you need when you arrive.
On January 11, 2024, Canada acceded to the Hague Apostille Convention, joining more than 120 countries that recognize a single certificate — the apostille — as sufficient authentication for public documents used across borders. For documents destined for signatory countries, the apostille replaces the older two-step process of authentication followed by consular legalization.
"The formality of legalisation… is abolished for… public documents which have been executed in the territory of one Contracting State and which have to be produced in the territory of another Contracting State." Hague Convention of 5 October 1961 Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents, Article 2
For documents issued or notarized in Ontario, the competent authority for apostille is Ontario's Official Documents Services (ODS), administered by the Ministry of Public and Business Service Delivery. This means a document notarized at Avion Law's Etobicoke office travels to Toronto's ODS for apostille — not to Global Affairs Canada in Ottawa. We prepare documents in the form ODS requires and provide the client with clear instructions for submission, or complete the submission on the client's behalf.
Ontario's ODS requires that documents in languages other than English or French be accompanied by a translation produced by (i) a certified Canadian translator who is a member of a recognized provincial translation association, or (ii) attested by an Ontario notary public who speaks the language of the underlying document. Where Avion Law cannot attest the translation directly, we coordinate with certified translators and ensure the translation and the original document are presented to ODS in the form the apostille process requires.
A small number of countries have not acceded to the Hague Apostille Convention. For documents destined for these countries, the older process still applies: the document is authenticated (receiving a certificate of authentication rather than an apostille), and then legalized by the embassy or consulate of the destination country in Canada. We identify the applicable process at the outset, based on where the document is going, and guide the client through each step.
For notarization and commissioning, please bring: