Can my employer refuse to comply with a retirement cash out form?
Get Legal Help Today
Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
Can my employer refuse to comply with a retirement cash out form?
I have recently left an employer and received severance and retirement cash out. In order to receive my retirement cash out, I had to fill out a packet. Within the packet was a requirement to have my spouse sign that I was receiving cash out and have it notarized. It stated both my spouse and notary signatures had to be on the same date. This was done. Additionally, the last page of the
packet stated I had to sign in front of a witness and get the witness signature, with these signatures on the same date. I have done this and submitted the packet. My former employer is now stating they cannot action the request of cash out because the date that my witness and I signed are after the date that my spouse and notary signed by 7 days. It does not state anywhere in the document that the 4 signatures have to be on the same date. When I asked about this they said they knew but that they wanted it that way anyway. Can they force me to redo the packet and delay my cash out?
Asked on April 16, 2019 under Employment Labor Law, Utah
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 5 years ago | Contributor
By definition, something must be notarized the day it is signed, since the notary must witness the signature and attest or certify that the person signing is the person he/she claims to be. If you and your witnessed signed 7 days after the notary, they were not properly notarized. While we have not seen the instructions on the document you describe, almost always, when signatures have to be notarized, all signatures must be notarized or signed in front of the notary. So generally, having the notary sign before you and your witnesses signatures would invalidate it.
Even if in this case, under the instructions for this particular document, only your wife's signature had to be notarized, it will be quicker to redo the packet than fight about this, since if they do not agree with you--as they evidently do not--you'd have to sue them, get a court to agree that you are right and they wrong, and get a court order that they pay you out. You can redo the packet much faster, and with less effort and cost, than it would take you to sue.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.