Forgery
Forgery is a criminal act involving the deliberate manipulation of documents with the intent to deceive or defraud individuals, corporations, or governments. This can range from the simple act of signing another person’s name on a check to the more complex creation of entirely forged documents. Often confused with counterfeiting, which involves the large-scale production of imitation items like currency, forgery typically focuses on altering existing legal documents, such as contracts or wills.
The historical roots of forgery laws trace back to ancient Rome, evolving through significant legal frameworks, including those established in Elizabethan England. In contemporary contexts, forgery is addressed through both federal and state laws in the United States, with legal repercussions that may include fines or imprisonment depending on the severity and intent of the offense. Defenses against forgery charges can vary, including claims of authorized signing or attempts to correct errors in documents. Given its complex nature, forgery remains a significant legal issue, emphasizing the necessity for vigilance in document verification and authentication.
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Forgery
SIGNIFICANCE: Forgery cheats individuals, corporations, and nations in a number of ways, including major losses of personal property.
Forgery is often defined as any deliberate tampering with a document for the purpose of deceit or fraud. It may start with a blank piece of paper and involve the production of entire forged documents. In most cases, however, forgery involves merely the signing of another person’s name to a check or other legal document, such as a contract or a will. In some cases, it also entails altering the language or monetary values on such documents. Forgery is a close cousin of counterfeiting, which is the wholesale manufacture of imitation documents, most often currency.
Laws against forgery date back to ancient Rome in the first century BCE. More recent attempts to codify such law arose in Elizabethan England during the late sixteenth century. In the latter half of the eighteenth century, legal scholar Sir William Blackstone noted in his highly influential Commentaries on the Laws of England (1765–69) that “there is now hardly a case possible to be conceived, wherein forgery, that tends to defraud . . . is not made a capital crime.”
In the United States, forgery is codified by federal law; however, it may be handled by either state or federal courts, depending on its substance. Forged items are not considered illegal until their possessors attempt to use them. When caught, perpetrators may invoke any of several lines of defense against the charges brought against them. The first possible defense is that authority was granted to the perpetrator to sign documents for other persons. Another is that the alterations performed were genuine efforts to correct perceived errors in the documents. Yet another argument frequently invoked is that the accused did not forge the items in question. Forgers have even been known to insist that their forged documents are genuine and to attempt to impeach the experts brought in to verify their forgeries. This approach sometimes works, as even the most advanced modern techniques of scientific document examination are not infallible.
In the United States, forgery is punished by fines or by imprisonment, the extent of which depends on local and federal laws. However, intent to defraud must be proved before sentences can be passed.
Bibliography
Brayer, Ruth. Detecting Forgery in Fraud Investigations: The Insider’s Guide. Alexandria: ASIS, 2000. Print.
Dines, Jess E. Document Examiner Textbook. Irvine: Pantex, 1998. Print.
Ellen, David. Scientific Examination of Documents: Methods and Techniques. 3rd ed. Boca Raton: CRC, 2006. Print.
"Forgery." Cornell Law School, December 2022, www.law.cornell.edu/wex/forgery#. Accessed 26 June 2024.
Slyter, Steven A. Forensic Signature Examination. Springfield: Thomas, 1995. Print.