The notary who bought the practice shrugged and washed his hands of the problem. Enter the Chambre des Notaires, the professional organization representing Quebec's 3,200 notaries. Spokesman Antonin Fortin listened patiently to the hapless vendor's sorry tale. He's heard similar stories, but not as often as you might think, given the volume of real-estate transactions that are notarized in Quebec each year. In the absence of specialized training, consumers must put their faith in their notaries, Fortin said.
Faith is great in the spiritual realm, but a lot less comforting in the world of dollars and cents.
That's why notaries are obliged to carry insurance to pay for their errors. That's also why the Chambre has an indemnization fund it uses to satisfy claims by consumers who are defrauded by their notaries, he said. She'd have to do some research and provide reasonable proof that she'd paid for services that were not rendered. She's going to file a claim. Just as soon as she's packed and moved.