Notary services in California are available to help you with signing contracts, power of attorney, wills, affidavits, deeds, and other common legal documents. The fraud deterrence provided by a Notary helps all parties entering into a legal agreement stay protected and avoid bad outcomes.
Always check with your selected Notary service prior to your visit to ensure any specific requirements for your state are met. In general, the following things are needed:
Remote or Online Notarization is a viable option in some states that's gaining significant traction even prior to COVID-19. Check for state specific guidelines with your Notary.
As with all things, check with your Notary ahead of time to make sure they're comfortable with it, but in general it is possible. It's important that the person signing be able to communicate with the Notary, but there's no specific requirement that the Notorizing agent be able to read the document itself.
Some documents require a third party witness to the signing, but not all. Rules again vary by state, so check with your Notary on whether a witness is needed and any specific requirements. Generally speaking it will need to be someone with no interest in (not mentioned in or otherwise impacted by) the agreement outlined in the document. Friends and neighbors are a good bet.
While some states are expanding their remote online notarization programs, these basically always require real time video communication rather than a traditional telephone. Check with your Notary to be sure, but expect that the answer will be no.