Civil-law notaries are bound by professional secrecy. This applies to all confidential information received by civil-law notaries in the course of their professional practice. This secrecy extends to the entirety of the civil-law notary's services and their scope, and is independent of whether a notarial deed is executed in the context of these services. Civil-law notaries may also not disclose this confidential information in legal proceedings. They may refuse to testify before a judge if doing so would require them to disclose confidential information. This is their right to confidentiality.