Russia's experience in legal security and the mechanism of compulsory notarization of important civil transactions

(Chinhphu.vn) - Legal security is the top priority in Russia's legal policy related to civil transactions. Based on this principle, Russia applies compulsory notarization to many potentially risky transactions to prevent fraud and ensure social order. Along with the four-tiered responsibility mechanism, Russia's notarization model creates peace of mind for the people.

Mr. Konstantin Korsik, Chairman of the Russian Federation Notary Association at the Vietnam-Russia cooperation workshop. Photo: VGP/BP

That was shared by Mr. Konstantin Korsik, Chairman of the Russian Federation Notary Association at the Vietnam-Russia cooperation conference. According to Mr. Konstantin Korsik, notarization plays an important role as a legal barrier to ensure safety, stability and transparency in civil transactions.

In the Russian Federation, many high-risk transactions such as real estate transfers, transactions involving minors or identifying shareholders when contributing capital to establish a business must be notarized. This regulation is based on an assessment of the level of risk, the possibility of disputes and the impact of the transaction on social order and security.

Mandatory notarization is not intended to increase procedures but to control risks from the first stage, prevent document forgery and acts of taking advantage of civil transactions to carry out illegal intentions.

According to Mr. Konstantin Korsik, in the context of increasingly complex civil transactions and the strong development of the property market, putting legal safety first is an inevitable requirement. Notaries perform the function of checking the capacity of the parties to act, clarifying their voluntary will before signing, explaining the rights and legal obligations arising from the transaction. Thanks to that, many potential disputes are eliminated and the parties can confidently carry out the transaction without worrying about future legal risks.

Practice in the Russian Federation shows that the compulsory notarization model has brought positive effects and long-term stability to the civil transaction market. The error rate in the entire notarization system is maintained at a very low level, below 0.001% of the total number of transactions. This number reflects the professional quality of the notary team as well as the strict supervision of professional organizations. People's trust in notarization activities is therefore increasingly strengthened.

In 2025, the number of notarized real estate transactions increased by more than 21%, reaching more than 750,000 transactions as of November. This is a sign that people choose notarization as a solution to ensure their own rights and limit legal risks during the transaction process.

Based on these positive results, Russia continues to expand the scope of transactions requiring notarization. Notably, from 2025, all real estate donation contracts between individuals must be notarized.

According to Mr. Konstantin Korsik, real estate donation transactions are inherently fraught with disputes if the parties are not fully aware of the legal consequences or are influenced by psychological and emotional factors. Mandatory notarization in this type of transaction helps ensure transparency, clearly define the will of the parties and create a foundation for the State to monitor and manage the movement of assets in society.

Focus on 4-level responsibility mechanism

Along with the mandatory notarization requirement, the Russian Federation pays special attention to the notary liability mechanism to protect the people's rights to the maximum extent when mistakes occur. According to Mr. Konstantin Korsik, all 8,200 notaries in Russia must comply with the 4-layer liability mechanism.

The first layer is mandatory personal professional liability insurance, which ensures that notaries have the financial resources to cover basic damages.

The second tier is collective insurance managed by regional notary associations, which provides an additional layer of protection when risks exceed the capacity of individuals.

The third level is the notary's personal property liability. When the insurance levels are not enough to compensate, the notary must use personal property to remedy the consequences. This regulation places very high demands on professional responsibility and forces notaries to strictly adhere to professional standards, avoiding any reckless behavior that may cause damage to the people.

The fourth tier is the National Compensation Fund, managed by the Federal Association of Notaries. With a size of about 1.3 billion rubles, the Fund is used to handle cases of particularly large losses, exceeding the capabilities of the previous three tiers.

The practice shows that this multi-layered liability mechanism is clearly effective. In 2024, the National Compensation Fund paid 7.2 million rubles to compensate for losses in a real estate transaction involving sophisticated forged documents. Timely compensation helps people avoid complicated legal procedures and risks due to notary errors. This is also an important mechanism to strengthen the trust of the whole society in notary activities.

From the experience of the Russian Federation, lessons can be drawn for Vietnam in the process of perfecting the Law on Notarization. In the context of a rapidly developing civil and economic market, it is necessary to establish the scope of transactions requiring notarization in high-risk areas to ensure people's rights and maintain social stability.

Vietnam can consider expanding notarization of real estate transactions, transfers of large-value assets, transactions involving vulnerable people or cases that are likely to lead to disputes. At the same time, research on building a liability mechanism that combines compulsory insurance, collective insurance and compensation funds is also a necessary solution to strengthen citizen protection and improve the effectiveness of notarization activities.

This shows that a notary system that wants to operate effectively and create social trust needs to be based on two main pillars: mandatory notarization requirements for risky transactions and a strict accountability mechanism, ensuring maximum benefits for the people. These are also important orientations for Vietnam to refer to in the process of perfecting the law and enhancing legal safety for civil transactions in the new period.

Bich Phuong

Source: https://baochinhphu.vn/kinh-nghiem-cua-nga-ve-an-toan-phap-ly-va-co-che-bat-buoc-cong-chung-giao-dich-dan-su-quan-trong-102251117162951328.htm