A forensic document examiner may be referred to as a handwriting expert or a handwriting analyst in the general public. Document examination is a discipline whereby the examiner will draw conclusions concerning a document or the handwriting, hand printing or typewriting on a document based on the evidence. Alterations of documents, authenticity of signatures, comparison of signatures, signature verification and handwriting identification as in cases of anonymous letters and forged signatures are among some of the issues regarding the authenticity of documents that a document examiner can address. The word "forensic" simply means the application of science to the law. There are no colleges or universities that offer training programs for document examiners. A degree in forensic science or criminal justice is not a necessary requirement to become a document examiner.
A graphologist or handwriting analyst should not be confused with a forensic document examiner. A graphologist, sometimes referred to as a handwriting analyst is a person that establishes a personality profile based on someone's handwriting. A graphologist does not have the same training as a document examiner and is not qualified to effectively render an opinion in document examination cases.
Certification for a document examiner implies that the document examiner has paid an additional fee (beyond their annual membership fee) to an organization that s/he belongs to and participated in that organization's proficiency testing. If the Document Examiner passes that organization's proficiency testing, then the Document Examiner will have been 'certified' as having passed that organization's proficiency test.
Proficiency testing measures a person's knowledge in a particular field. A Document Examiner has a choice regarding proficiency testing. A document examiner can choose to not participate in any proficiency testing at all, choose to participate in proficiency testing with an organization that s/he belongs to or choose to participate in independent, third party proficiency testing with testing facilities that the document examiner is not affiliated with in any capacity.
I have chosen to participate in proficiency testing with two independent, third party testing facilities: CTS (Collaborative Testing Services)(controlled test with known results), and ST2AR (Skill -Task Training Assessment & Research) (controlled tests with known results).
A Certified Fraud Examiner is not a Certified Document Examiner. A Certified Fraud Examiner is a person who has completed a course of specialized training with an organization regarding fraud involving businesses such as as banks, corporations, and retail stores, and passed testing from that organization. A Certified Fraud Examiner may also be known as a forensic accountant or internal auditor. A Certified Fraud Examiner cannot give an opinion and testify in court regarding questioned document cases unless s/he has received other additional training to become a document examiner.
A Document Examiner and a Fraud Examiner are two entirely different fields of study, though both are committed to fighting fraud. Some document examiners work in both fields because they have received training in both fields. Although I am a member of the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners, I have chosen to focus primarily on continued training in document examination.
No. A Document Examiner does not need to be certified by a specific organization in order to render an opinion and/or testify in court. It is the Judge that finds the Document Examiner as being qualified to give an opinion--not an organization, not an opposing attorney and not an opposing examiner. See Federal Rule 702 below.
NOWHERE in any documentation does it state that an expert is REQUIRED to be trained by a government or law enforcement agency or that a Document Examiner MUST belong to a specific organization or be certified by a specific organization in order to give an opinion or testify in court with regard to an opinion.
According to the Federal Rules of Evidence; Article VII; Rule 702: If scientific, technical, or other specialized knowledge will assist the trier of fact to understand the evidence or to determine a fact in issue, a witness qualified as an expert by knowledge, skill, experience, education or training, may testify in the form of an opinion or otherwise, if (1) the testimony is based upon sufficient facts or data, (2) the testimony is the product of reliable principles and methods, and (3) the witness has applied the principles and methods reliably to the facts of the case.
Legal authorities agree that, “An expert is a person who has special and competent knowledge of a subject, and who obtained this special knowledge either through study or through experience.” (Miller vs State, Okla. Cr. 255, 131 Page 717)
FSAB does NOT accredit or endorse ANY organization. FSAB only accredits a certifying process.
I am court qualified in State and Federal Court, have specialized training and experience and charge affordable, flat rate fees.
You can call me for a free consultation to discuss your case. Should you decide to retain me, I would need either the original documents or high resolution scans or copies of the original documents including exemplars which are known, verifiable handwriting samples used for comparison. I can provide you with an exhaustive list of where to get exemplars, if needed. I would examine the documents concerning your case and provide you with a verbal opinion. If necessary, I would then provide you with a written letter of opinion.
Certainly! We receive many cases such as this.
Typically, it takes 24-48 hours depending on my caseload at the time. Weekend and rush jobs have additional fees attached.
A forgery is an imitation or alteration of a document, handwriting or signature that is represented as an original with the intent to defraud. The word 'forgery' is a term used in law. I can only determine if a document or handwriting is genuine or not genuine.
An exemplar is a verifiable handwriting specimen that is known to be genuine. Exemplars are compared with questioned writing and questioned documents in order to determine the authenticity of what is questioned. Genuineness of the exemplars can be proven by the admission of the person who wrote it, by witnesses who saw the person writing or who heard the person acknowledge his handwriting, or by acceptance of the documents in the normal course of business. An exemplar is also called a standard.
The word “Forensic” means the 'application of science to law.' A Forensic Document Examiner (also known as Questioned Document Examiner) discovers and develops evidence from a document or signature that can be used in a court of law. The document examiner's job is to determine whether handwriting/printing is authentic or not authentic and to either identify or eliminate a person as an author.