Legal Alert: Indiana Changes Recording Requirements (Again)

Previous Requirement Language

Effective July 1, 2020, Indiana Code (“IC”) § 32-21-2-3(a) states that for a conveyance, a mortgage, or an instrument of writing to be recorded, it must be acknowledged by either the grantor, or other signer (“Grantor”) before certain authorized notarial officers (“Acknowledgement”) and a common law proof described in IC § 32-21-2-6 (“Proof”). This represented a change to the statutory language which traditionally required either the Acknowledgement or the inclusion of Proof, but not both.

“And” Back to “Or”

Recognizing the issues created by requiring both an Acknowledgement and the inclusion of Proof, Governor Holcomb signed House Enrolled Act (“HEA”) 1056 on February 18, 2021. Effective upon its signature by the Governor, HEA 1056 reverts the statutory language used to pre-July 1, 2020 language, and now requires either an Acknowledgment or inclusion of Proof to record a document, but no longer both. This bifurcated Acknowledgement and Proof requirement was the standard practice in Indiana until the change on July 1, 2020. HEA 1056 also provides protection for any documents recorded between July 1, 2020, and today, that did not contain two notarial acts (the Acknowledgment and Proof).

Next Steps

This change is welcome news to those recording documents in Indiana and simplifies the recording requirements. Any document that you intend to record still requires either an Acknowledgment or the inclusion of Proof in order to comply with the aforementioned requirements, just as it did prior to July 1, 2020. It is recommended that any recorded document be reviewed by the Rothberg real estate team to ensure it is in compliance with the Indiana recording statues prior to recordation.

More Information

Latest Version of House Enrolled Act 1056

If you have any questions, please contact your Rothberg attorney, or the authors of this Legal Alert.

Thomas B. Trent
Jared C. Helge
Michael T. Deam
Dennis F. Dykhuizen
Alexander J. Platte
Phillip W. Smith II

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