...and what are their responsibilities?
a notary public is a person who is licensed and/or appointed by a state, who may serve as an impartial witness to the signing of key documents.
the key function of a notary is to be certain that the person appearing before the notary is who that person claims to be.
notarial duties include confirming identity, inspecting documents and ensuring the signers understand the contents of the documents they are signing.
a notary is responsible for ensuring the identity of the people signing important documents, being vigilant that state rules are being followed, and using sound judgment if it appears a person is misrepresenting themselves or otherwise working to undermine the notarization process.
a notaries job is not to explain the contents of your documents OR to provide their personal opinion of your documents.
a Virginia notary may refuse to notarize a document for any reason.