What's a notary?

[SauvignonBlanche]

My American attorney (long story) asked if we had notaries over here that could
witness my signature.
I said I'd never heard of such a thing and that anyone who knew me could witness my signature.
Am I being thick or is this just an American concept?

They are in the UK - Called notary public here.

Should be a statutory swear fee of £5 per doc. Use law society.org.uk to find one. Dr pinna in Piccadilly london are a big name notary public.

Giving you inaccurate info, sorry, it's been a while.. Ignore £5 I was thinking of another legal fee. Also sorry not law society but this www.thenotariessociety.org.uk/

sadly a lot more than the £5 charged for a swear. In excess of £100 last time I needed to use one. Thankfully the one I used was happy to accept a bottle of scotch instead of the normal fee

Thank you, it seems a bit OTT just to get my signature verified but c'est la vie.

The point of a Notary is that they have a specific qualification that allows them to 'notarise' documents so that they are recognised in foreign jurisdictions. That's why your US lawyer has advised you to consult one. Requirements for signature/sealing/witnessing vary in different countries, so it's fairly common to need documents and signatures to be 'notarised' for them to be recognised overseas.