Colorado Notary Practice Exam Prep: Practice Test & Study Guide

The correct choice is to screen for identity, willingness, and basic awareness. In situations where a signer may be experiencing cognitive decline, such as early stages of Alzheimer's disease, the notary has the responsibility to assess the signer's mental capacity to ensure they can understand the act of signing and its implications.

This screening process includes verifying the individual's identity through valid identification, ensuring that they are willingly signing without coercion, and evaluating their basic awareness and understanding of the document they are signing. A notary must be vigilant in determining whether the signer has the necessary mental competency to engage in the notarization process. This aligns with the ethical and legal obligations of a notary to prevent fraud and ensure that documents are only notarized when the signer is capable of making informed decisions.

The other options do not adequately address the notary's role in assessing mental capacity directly:

- Refusing to notarize without conducting an assessment may overlook individuals who still possess some degree of understanding.

- Contacting a legal advisor could be appropriate in complex situations, but it does not replace the immediate responsibility of the notary to assess the signer on-the-spot.

- Asking a family member for consent does not suffice in ensuring the signer's competence; it is the notary's