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Ascrivener is a professionalcopyist orscribe whose occupation involves writing or preparing official documents, such as deeds, contracts, mortgages, and other legal instruments, typically for a fee. The profession originated in medieval Europe amid lowliteracy rates, where scriveners handled essentialsecretarial,administrative, andnotarial duties, often functioning in the lower echelons of the legal field akin to early solicitors.[citation needed] Scriveners later developed into notaries,court reporters, and in England and Wales,scrivener notaries.[1][2] Styles ofhandwriting used by scriveners includedsecretary hand,book hand andcourt hand.
Scriveners remain common mainly in countries where literacy rates remain low, such as India.[citation needed] In these countries, scriveners will read letters for illiterate customers, as well as write letters or fill out forms for a fee. In areas with very high literacy rates, they are far less common, though social welfare organizations and public libraries will sometimes assist persons of low literacy in filling out official forms, and drafting formal correspondences.
Despite the high literacy rate, in France, "public writers" (écrivains publics) are still common. Their job mainly consists of composing formal writings likecurricula vitae ormotivation letters for people who do not write well, as well as other things likeadvertisements, orghostwriting books. InFrench-speaking Belgium their return dates from 1999, in an effort to curb semi-literacy and broader socio-cultural inequality; they also include services like reading out loud.[3]
The word comes from Middle Englishscriveiner, an alteration of obsoletescrivein, fromAnglo-Frenchescrivein, ultimately fromVulgar Latin*scriban-, scriba, itself an alteration ofLatinscriba (scribe).
InJapan, the word "scrivener" is used as the standard translation ofshoshi (書士), in referring to legal professions such asjudicial scriveners andadministrative scriveners.
In theIrish language, ascríbhneoir is a writer, or a person who writes. Similarly, inWelsh,ysgrifennu is 'to write',ysgrifennwr is 'writer' andysgrifennydd is 'secretary, scribe'.[4]
A famous work of fiction featuring scriveners is theshort storyBartleby, the Scrivener byHerman Melville, first published in 1853.
In England and Wales, a scrivener notary is anotary who is fluent in multiple languages.
Scrivener notary tasks generally include authentication and drafting oflegal documents for use in international contexts.
The doctrine of a "scrivener's error" is the legal principle that a map-drafting or typographical error in a written contract may be corrected by oral evidence if the evidence is clear, convincing, and precise. If such correction (called scrivener's amendment) affects property rights then it must be approved by those affected by it.[5]
It is a mistake made while copying or transmitting legal documents, as distinguished from a judgment error, which is an error made in the exercise of judgment or discretion, or a technical error, which is an error in interpreting a law, regulation, or principle.There is a considerable body ofcase law concerning the proper treatment of a scrivener's error. For example, where the parties to a contract make an oral agreement that, when reduced to a writing, is mis-transcribed, the aggrieved party is entitled to reformation so that the writing corresponds to the oral agreement.
A scrivener's error can be grounds for an appellate court to remand a decision back to the trial court. For example, inOrtiz v. State of Florida, Ortiz had been convicted of possession of less than 20 g of marijuana, a misdemeanor. However, Ortiz was mistakenly adjudicated guilty of a felony for the count of marijuana possession. The appellate court held that "we must remand the case to the trial court to correct a scrivener's error."[6]
In some circumstances, courts can also correct scrivener's errors found in primary legislation.[7]
Scrivener definition.