In brief

  • Notaries public have a completely new disciplinary regulation, which replaces the 2013 one from the very day it was published, 14 July 2026.
  • Anyone who wants to complain about a notary still cannot bring the action themselves: only the minister of justice, the president of the Union or the notarial Chamber’s managing board can do so.
  • The recommended 60-day period within which the action had to be brought after the preliminary investigation has disappeared from the regulation. Only the statutory time limits remain: 6 months from the moment the misconduct became known and no more than 3 years from the moment it was committed.
Act: UNNPR Decision no. 92/2026
Published: Official Gazette of Romania (Monitorul Oficial) no. 577 of 14 July 2026
In force from: 14 July 2026

The Disciplinary Board of notaries public, the body that hears misconduct cases against notaries across the country, has been working under new rules since 14 July 2026. Decision no. 92/2026 of the Council of the National Union of Notaries Public of Romania, published in Official Gazette of Romania no. 577 of 14 July 2026, approves an entirely new regulation and repeals the 2013 one on the same day. This is the second overhaul of a regulated legal profession published in this period, after the republication of the Statute of insolvency practitioners.

The Disciplinary Board hears two kinds of cases: disciplinary misconduct by notaries public, and applications for a finding on whether a notary still meets the requirement of good standing. The second category is the heavier one, because the decision may also include a proposal to terminate the person’s status as a notary public.

The Board is made up of one representative of each Chamber of Notaries Public, elected by the general assembly of the Chamber for a four-year term. Its members are independent and subject only to the law, and cases are heard by a panel of three, in public session.

What it changes in practice

The first effect is that the old regulation, approved by UNNPR Council Decision no. 74/2013, ceases to apply on the very day the new one is published, with no transition period.

The second effect is transitional, but decisive for pending files: the new rules apply only to cases registered after the regulation entered into force. Files already before the Disciplinary Board are heard further under the rules in force on the date the disciplinary action was received.

The third effect concerns those who pay for running the system, that is the notaries, through the Union. The monthly allowance no longer goes to the president of the Disciplinary Board alone, but to the vice-president as well, while the other members receive an allowance for each hearing of every panel they sit on, plus for plenary sittings. The regulation says explicitly that a member sitting on several panels on the same day receives an allowance for each of them.

The fourth effect concerns the leadership of the Board. The president and the vice-president are now elected separately, on distinct lists, first the president and then the vice-president, and if no candidate obtains a majority, a second round is held between the top two.

The fifth effect is a clarification that practice had asked for: members elected between two congresses, validated by the Union Council, begin their term on the date set by the validation decision, which is then ratified by the Congress.

What has changed compared with the previous situation

Compared with the 2013 text, published in Official Gazette of Romania no. 530 of 22 August 2013, the architecture of the procedure has stayed the same: the same three parties entitled to bring the disciplinary action, the same mandatory preliminary investigation, the same panel of three members, the same public hearing, the same hearing intervals of no more than 15 days and the same avenue of appeal, a challenge before the Union Council within 15 days of notification.

What has gone is an entire article. The 2013 regulation provided, in Article 17, that the disciplinary action was to be brought within 60 days of the completion of the preliminary investigation, and specified that this was a recommended period. That text no longer exists in the 2026 regulation. In practice, between the close of the preliminary investigation and the bringing of the action there is no longer any time marker at all, not even an indicative one.

The second deletion is more discreet. The 2013 regulation stated, in Article 18(2), that the 6-month period was a limitation period for bringing the disciplinary action, and the 3-year one a limitation period for disciplinary liability. In 2026, Article 18 keeps the periods but drops that characterisation. The periods themselves come in any event from Article 75(13) of the Law on Notaries Public No 36/1995, and the limitation period for disciplinary liability remains, under the new regulation, one of the few objections that can be raised even after the first hearing.

Beyond the 2013 text, the new regulation spells out the duties of each member of the Board, adds the rule on terms beginning between congresses, allows the registers to be kept in electronic form or on paper, and includes six annexes: the model applications for the disciplinary action and for the finding on good standing, the three registers and the model seal.

Advantages and disadvantages

What it improves

  • The rules of procedure are gathered in a single updated text, instead of a 2013 regulation amended several times along the way.
  • The right of defence is written down explicitly: the parties may be represented or assisted by a notary public or by a lawyer throughout the case.
  • The rules on incompatibility are set out in detail, including kinship up to the fourth degree with the notary under investigation or with the party bringing the action, and the situation of a member who has already heard the same case.
  • The registers may be kept in electronic form, which opens the way to a verifiable record of disciplinary files.
  • The short hearing intervals, of no more than 15 days, remain in the text, and the panel may set hearings even from one day to the next.

What remains a problem

  • A citizen unhappy with a notary still has no direct access to the Disciplinary Board. Their complaint triggers a preliminary investigation at most, and the decision to bring the action still belongs to the profession or to the ministry.
  • Dropping the 60-day period removes from the regulation the only marker that put pressure on the interval between the end of the investigation and the bringing of the action, even if it was merely a recommendation.
  • The regulation does not provide for publication of disciplinary decisions, so the public cannot find out whether a notary has been sanctioned other than by asking the Board.
  • The challenge is still heard inside the profession, by the Union Council, before a court can be reached.
  • The increase in the number of allowances, including for several panels on the same day, is the only change with a direct financial effect, and it comes with no justification in the text.

Practical advice

  1. If you have a problem with a notary public, send your complaint to the Chamber of Notaries Public in whose district that notary practises, or to the Ministry of Justice. Do not address it directly to the Disciplinary Board, which cannot be seised by private individuals.
  2. Do not wait. The disciplinary action may be brought within 6 months of the date on which the entitled party learned of the misconduct, and in no case later than 3 years after it was committed.
  3. Describe the facts concretely, with dates, document numbers and supporting papers attached. The application by which the action is brought must set out a description of the misconduct, the evidence and the proposed sanction, so the more precise your complaint, the better its chances of being taken up.
  4. If you are a notary under disciplinary investigation, file your statement of defence by the first hearing at which the procedure has been lawfully completed. After that moment you can no longer offer new evidence, and you can raise only three objections: the limitation period for disciplinary liability, the absence of a preliminary investigation and the lack of standing of the party bringing the action.
  5. Check the date on which the action was registered. Files received before 14 July 2026 are heard under the old regulation, those received afterwards under the new one.
  6. The challenge is filed within 15 days of notification of the decision, in writing, with the Disciplinary Board, not directly with the Union Council.

Frequently asked questions

Can I complain about a notary directly to the Disciplinary Board?
No. The disciplinary action may be brought only by the minister of justice, by the president of the National Union of Notaries Public or by the managing board of the Chamber in the notary’s district. Your complaint reaches one of them and may trigger the preliminary investigation.
Within what time must the action be brought?
Within 6 months of the date on which the entitled party learned of the misconduct, but no later than 3 years after it was committed. The periods come from the Law on Notaries Public No 36/1995 and are taken over in the regulation.
Who hears the case, and how?
A panel of three members of the Disciplinary Board, one of whom presides over the panel, and decisions are taken by majority vote. The hearing is public.
What happens to files opened before 14 July 2026?
They are heard under the rules in force on the date the disciplinary action was received. The new regulation applies only to cases registered after it entered into force.
What appeal is available?
A challenge before the Union Council, within 15 days of notification of the decision. The written application is filed with the Disciplinary Board, not with the Union Council. Once final, the decision is enforceable.
What does the requirement of good standing mean?
It is a legal condition that the notary must meet throughout their career. The application for a finding may be made by the Ministry of Justice or by the Union, through its president, and the decision may include a proposal to terminate the person’s status as a notary public.
May a member of the Board hear any case?
No. A member is disqualified if they are the spouse of, or related by blood or by marriage up to the fourth degree to, the notary under investigation, the party bringing the action or a member of the managing board that brought the action, as is the member who represents the Chamber of the notary under investigation, and the one who has already heard the same case sent back for a fresh hearing.

Original text of the legal act

The text below is reproduced in Romanian, the official form of publication.

The full text, as published in the Official Gazette of Romania

Official Gazette of Romania no. 577 of 14 July 2026 16 pages PDF, 125 KB the act starts on page 5

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This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. For specific situations, consult a licensed attorney or tax advisor.