Tex. Civil Practice and Remedies Code § 121.005
This is the official text of Tex. Civil Practice and Remedies Code § 121.005, part of Texas’s Civil Practice and Remedies Code — sets procedural rules and available remedies for civil lawsuits.
Not legal advice. This page reproduces the official text of a government statute for reference only. Laws change, and how a statute applies depends on your specific facts. For advice about your situation, consult a licensed attorney in your state.
§ 121.005. PROOF OF IDENTITY OF ACKNOWLEDGING PERSON.
Official statutory text
(a) An officer may not take the acknowledgment of a written instrument unless the officer knows or has satisfactory evidence that the acknowledging person is the person who executed the instrument and is described in it. An officer may accept, as satisfactory evidence of the identity of an acknowledging person, only:
(1) the oath of a credible witness who:
(A) is personally known to the officer; or
(B) provides the officer with a current identification card or other document issued by the federal government or any state government that contains the photograph and signature of the witness;
(2) a current identification card or other document issued by the federal government or any state government that contains the photograph and signature of the acknowledging person; or
(3) with respect to a deed or other instrument relating to a residential real estate transaction, a current passport issued by a foreign country.
(b) Except in a short form certificate of acknowledgment authorized by Section 121.008, the officer must note in the certificate of acknowledgment that:
(1) he personally knows the acknowledging person; or
(2) evidence of a witness or an identification card or other document was used to identify the acknowledging person.
(1) the oath of a credible witness who:
(A) is personally known to the officer; or
(B) provides the officer with a current identification card or other document issued by the federal government or any state government that contains the photograph and signature of the witness;
(2) a current identification card or other document issued by the federal government or any state government that contains the photograph and signature of the acknowledging person; or
(3) with respect to a deed or other instrument relating to a residential real estate transaction, a current passport issued by a foreign country.
(b) Except in a short form certificate of acknowledgment authorized by Section 121.008, the officer must note in the certificate of acknowledgment that:
(1) he personally knows the acknowledging person; or
(2) evidence of a witness or an identification card or other document was used to identify the acknowledging person.
Status: in_force · Read it on the official government site
Need a lawyer in Texas?
Find a Texas lawyer
About this page: Statute text is reproduced from official government publishers via the
Open US Law dataset
(Vaquill AI, snapshot v2026.08, CC BY 4.0). Primary legislative text like this is public domain under the government-edicts doctrine
(Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 2020). We link every section back to its official source so you can verify it independently.