Σanivat tažnažan
A σanivat tažnažan or xanivat tazhnazhan (CHA-nee-vaht TAZH-na-zhan, meaning literally "[royal] court steward" in Tavari), known usually as a σanivat (plural σanivati) or a ΣT in Tavari and often called a "Tavari notary" in Staynish-Codexian, is a notarial professional who has gone through a formal certification to serve various quasi-judicial functions, primarily the administration of estates and the execution of wills and codicils, administering oaths, taking affidavits and other sworn declarations, validating signatures on legal documents, certifying and providing verified duplications of certain classes of documents, and serving as a neutral, third-party mediator in certain, statutorily defined, non-contentious legal matters between private parties, usually disputes over ownership of property but also including divorces where the couple has no children.
Due to their expertise in presiding over formal proceedings and taking oaths, σanivati are regularly hired by public and private boards and authorities (ranging from condo association boards to the Tavari national legislature) to serve as presiding officers and/or clerks, allowing the members of the body to focus on their work and, in the case of many governmental bodies, retain and use their vote.
Σanivati are neither lawyers nor judges, do not represent clients in courts of law, do not provide legal advice regarding matters they are not qualified to preside over, and do not have law degrees. However, many Tavari lawyers begin their careers as σanivati, because it is possible—and common—to attain the σanivat certification (see "Education" below) while in the process of becoming a fully fledged lawyer. Σanivati are entitled to use the post-nominal letters ΣT, and it is a crime in Tavaris to represent oneself as a σanivat or use the post-nominal without the certification.
The powers, duties, and certification requirements of σanivat tažnažan are extensively spelled out in Tavari law. Σanivati are regarded as serving an important role in handling low-level, non-contentious legal matters that would otherwise be handled by the courts, thus freeing a degree of the court system's capacity for more contentious matters. Σanivati also exist in other countries whose legal systems descend from Tavari law, including every member of the Tavari Union except Greater Ilarís (where they have been abolished) and Racatrazi (where for various reasons they were never popular.)
History
The Stewards' Guild, the national labor union and trade association representing σanivati, states that the profession descends from the traditions of the first Tavari scribes, who originated the written Tavari language in the second half of the ninth century CE, but the formalized office and role of σanivat tažnažan did not fully emerge until the 14th century, after the series of changes to national administration that occurred upon Tavari unification. Originally, σanivati served as the literal court stewards—as in administrative officials supervising manors and lands—to the King and the chiefs of each Line (clan), but as the chiefs gradually lost legal authority to the King and the national government, these court stewards began to offer similar services to common households, especially after the abolition of the chiefs in 1793.
The Tavari National Diet began hiring σanivati to serve as presiding officer in the early 19th century, after Delegates complained that serving as presiding officer of the Diet meant they could not vote, meaning their constituents were essentially disenfranchised. It has never been a written requirement for the Diet's presiding officer to be an elected member of the body. Nearly all other government bodies in Tavaris (such as provincial Legislative Councils, municipal councils, etc.) have retained this tradition, as have most governmental bodies in the other countries of the Tavari Union, especially Metradan, where the law mandates all public bodies have non-member professional mediators as presiding officers.
Education
Minimum standards for σanivat education are spelled out in the law of each jurisdiction where they exist, but the specific curriculum and the content of the exam candidates must pass to attain their certification are strictly controlled by the Stewards' Guild, which is based in Tavaris but has always represented all σanivati internationally. In the modern day, it is possible to attain a σanivat certification at a university or college, either as a standalone, non-degree certification known as a Σanivat's Diploma or part of a Bachelor's degree (usually in "Σanivat and Paralegal Studies") that includes the σanivat certification curriculum as well as training for other kinds of legal careers.
A Σanivat's Diploma takes two and a half years to complete, with a full year (the second year) dedicated to studying property, estate, and marriage law. The second year includes no summer break and is popularly regarded as the primary "weeder" of incapable candidates from the program because of the intensity and depth of the material. It is not required to have a college degree of any kind in order to attain a Σanivat's Diploma, only to have completed secondary school. Being a σanivat is often cited in the Tavari Union as an example of a career track that is highly esteemed but does not require a four-year degree, and is typically counted by Tavari as one of the skilled trades. However, since 1965, σanivati who do not have at least a bachelor's degree have been required by the Stewards' Guild to serve in an "apprentice capacity" for their first four years of their careers, requiring the counter-signature of another σanivat for their acts to be valid and forbidding them from presiding over mediation tribunals. Because employers of σanivati rarely hire more than one at a time, apprenticeships are considered hard to come by, and as a result, since the 1970s a significant majority of σanivati have attained bachelor's degrees. A 2022 survey conducted by the Stewards' Guild showed 72% of σanivati serving at that time had had at least a bachelor's degree when they began their career.
After attaining either a Σanivat's Diploma or a bachelor's degree from a program accredited by the Stewards' Guild, an aspiring σanivat must pass the Σanivat Examination, which is notorious for having a low rate of passage on the first attempt. The examination is offered only directly by the Guild, and is a six-hour long test consisting of 144 multiple choice questions and a "practical examination" consisting of two mock scenarios designed to be excessively complex property disputes the candidate must correctly and satisfactorily resolve as mediator, scored by active σanivati.
The Stewards' Guild permits only a few exemptions from education requirements in specific circumstances. Individuals who are already lawyers admitted to the bar are allowed to entirely forgo any further education and simply take the Σanivat Examination. Individuals who have bachelor's degree in some field other than σanivat studies are allowed to skip some of the more general courses in the curriculum dealing with, for example, basic writing skills and other things already covered in their degree's courses. The exact number of courses waived depends on the degree, but will usually cut about one year from the 2.5 year program.
In addition to the required certification to become a σanivat, σanivati must also complete mandated continuing education courses each year in order to maintain their certification, currently 24 credit-hours per year. These courses ensure σanivati are regularly refreshed on the basics as well as kept updated on relevant changes.
The currently serving Prime Minister of Tavaris is, by law, considered to hold all the powers and authority of a σanivat while in office without any certification or examination because the Prime Minister is required to administer the Oath of Office to a Tavari monarch ascending to the throne. The law also envisions the Prime Minister as serving as the official σanivat of the Council of State, though it is quite rare in the modern day for the Prime Minister to exercise these administrative functions personally. There is no such exemption for the monarch, whose authority to administer oaths comes from elsewhere in the law, nor for any other heads of government in the Tavari Union, though the Stewards' Guild has indicated that it would agree to institute such exemptions should any of the other Tavari Union member countries seek to do so.