TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Julia Wilburn on Jan 14, 2026

Rhea County lawyer Carol Ann Barron was censured by the Tennessee Supreme Court on Jan. 14. Barron is a notary public, and she needed to notarize her client’s signatures in a transfer of property. Her notary stamp was not in her office, but her assistant is also a notary. Barron received permission to use the assistant’s notary stamp, and Barron then notarized the signatures of her clients by signing the assistant’s name and using the assistant’s notary stamp on a deed. She did not indicate that she was signing someone else’s name “with permission.” The court found that these actions violated Rules of Professional Conduct 4.1 and 8.4(c).