ABSTRACT

Handwriting and the analysis of questioned documents have had a contentious legal history throughout the centuries. Comparing handwriting in a genuinely written document with handwriting in a possible forged document has been treated in various ways in the courts of law: sometimes, such handwriting comparisons have been banned, while at other times, they have been allowed. More often than not, disputed documents can help link a suspect to a crime, including financial extortion, identity theft, medical malpractice, insurance fraud, elder abuse, and contract disputes in business. Forging a handwritten document to deceive people is not new. Apparently, handwriting forgery has been found everywhere handwriting was an important medium of communication. English law followed Roman law in that it used charters to confirm land rights, privileges, and tax orders. The United States adopted much of England’s system of jurisprudence, including the common-law rule that a comparison of handwritings could not be used to prove that certain documents were forgeries.