Trusted Document & Handwriting Experts.

What you need to provide your document examiner:

• Document type; Will, mortgage, agreement, etc.
• What is the alleged date of the document?
• Is it an original with wet ink signatures or a copy?
• Is it a PDF or photocopy?
• Do you have the document in possession?

Questioned Signatures

• Do you think the signatures are forged or altered?
• You should have as many known signatures of an individual as possible for comparison. We recommend 20-30, but at least 15.
• Get known signature examples from other documents, checks, or known writings.
• Get signature examples from around the same time period as the questioned document, also prior to and after the date of the questioned document.
• Documents with wet ink signatures are best.

Paper Examination

• We can date the paper of documents by comparing them to the paper from other documents with a known date, or by matching them to examples in our database.
• Original documents are necessary to date or compare the document to others from the same time period in order to determine if the document is authentic.
• We can match photocopies to other know sources of paper.
• We can match the paper from a questioned mortgage note to copies of your mortgage documents, they all came from the same paper source and should match.

Original documents are always preferred. But original documents are not always available. Always try to provide the best quality copy available. Try to scan documents with a high quality, or high definition photo scanner and save the files as a .tiff file format, or at least a .png file. Photo images (jpg or PDF) are not good for forensic analysis because they utilize jpg compression to reduce the file size. This makes it easy to send images, but they lose the quality necessary for good forensic analysis.    

A Forensic Document Examiner will usually ask for 20-30 known signatures or writing examples from the person whose signature or writing is in question. This is so we can determine the normal variations in a person’s writing. Since nobody signs their signature exactly the same way twice, we have to establish how much variation in style and letter formation is normal. 

This depends on the circumstances around you case. If the opposing side or Court holds the documents, we may need to come to them. Paper Forensics has a portable laboratory or equipment that we transport to wherever the documents are.

The cost of contesting a will depends on the complexity of the estate, the state where the fraud occurs, the legal fees involved, but generally, contesting a fraudulent will can cost individuals thousands of dollars in attorney fees, with estimates ranging from $5,000 to $10,000 or more in complex cases.

Key points about the cost of will and trust fraud:

Legal Fees:

This is the primary expense when contesting a fraudulent will and the cost of hiring an attorney can vary on the lawyer’s experience and the case’s complexity

Filing Fees:

Additional costs include court filing fees, which can differ based on the jurisdiction.

Expert witness cost:

If necessary, utilizing a forensic document examiner or other expert witnesses to prove fraud can further increase the cost of litigation.

Factors impacting the cost:

Estate size:

Larger estates with more assets are likely to involve higher legal fees in a fraud case.

Fraudulent actions:

The nature and complexity of the fraud, such as forgery or undue influence, can influence the cost of the legal battle.

State laws:

Different states have varying rules regarding estate litigation, which will also have an impact on costs.

Important considerations:

Emotional toll:

Beyond the financial cost, contesting a will can be emotionally draining for family members, especially when dealing with the loss of a loved one. This is the biggest factor that led us to develop our DocuDNA Page-Lock document security system.

We hear this comment all the time. But in reality a document examination is a much more complex that people realize.

Even in a case where it may be one questioned signature, a document examiner has certain methods, standards, and procedures they must go through to do a proper examination. The last thing you want to do is have an examiner do a "quick" or "cheap" examination. 

If you are going to spend any money to get a questioned document examined, make sure it is conducted by a professional, experienced examiner. Spend your money efficiently, but wisely. Even a single questioned signature examination will take the examiner hours to obtain known signatures and examples of the persons writing, prepare those signatures for reports and court exhibits.

If you accuse someone of forging a signature, don't think that they or their attorney won't challenge you to prove it and challenge your document examiner if they used proper methods, standards, and procedures to do the examination. You want the best examination and representation you can afford. 

Ask your potential document examiner exactly what you will receive from they as far as the examination and expert report. Also, don't be fooled by examiners offering a verbal opinion. A verbal opinion won't do you any good in court. You'll need a professional written report and profession exhibits.

Fraud involving legal documents cost Americans billions of dollars every year in lost business property and litigation costs. Your important documents are one of the most vulnerable assets you possess. For Instance, nobody ever thinks that a family member would every take your Will or Trust and change it, but it happens all the time.

Legal document fraud emotionally affects those victimized by it and each year in the United States those victims incur millions of dollars in legal fees and court costs in attempting to obtain redress.

Much of the fraudulent activity conducted on documents involves altered text and cut & paste signatures. It is important to hire a forensic document examiner who understands current technologies that are being used to alter documents. I know and understands these software programs and how to identify these alterations. Conducting forensic handwriting analysis, document dating and forensic paper analysis along with thorough understanding of various forgery techniques, then being able to explain them in scientific terms, is what makes a paper expert necessary.

Our firm has expertise in Paper Science & Engineering, Paper Manufacturing and have spent nearly 30 years working and consulting in the paper industry. We have the expertise in understanding how paper is made and what unique properties that can be identified in altered documents. There is an untold story of evidence ready to be uncovered within the paper of altered documents.

In addition, we have experience in Art and Color and its relationship to the optical properties of paper. Our development of ScanRite Paper ID Technology allows us to determine if any single page within a questioned document comes from a different manufactured source, allowing us to determine if it is a substituted sheet. We provide scientific, statistical analysis and reporting to provide conclusive evidence, not just an opinion.

One of our areas of expertise is surface and colloid chemistry which is related to the chemical relationships and interactions between the surface properties of a sheet of paper and the inks and toners that are printed on the paper. This expertise is invaluable in document dating and identifying paper sources.

​Years of working with companies like Xerox, HP, Cannon and Deluxe Check has given us the understanding of this interface of paper and printing properties. Our paper scientists have developed papers for laser, inkjet and micr printing purposes and understands the unique properties of each of these technologies and how they interact with the surface of a sheet of paper.

Fraud involving legal documents costs Americans billions of dollars every year in lost business, property, time, and litigation costs. Your important documents are one of the most vulnerable assets. For instance, nobody thinks that a family member would ever take your Will or Trust and change it, but it happens all the time.

​Much of the fraudulent activity conducted on documents involves altered text and cut-and-paste signatures. It is important to hire a forensic document examiner who understands current technologies that are being used to alter documents. We know and understand these software programs and how to identify alterations. Conducting forensic handwriting analysis, document dating and forensic paper analysis along with a thorough understanding of various forgery techniques is what makes a paper expert necessary. 

With a degree in Paper Science & Engineering and having spent over 30 years working and consulting in the paper industry, Doug has the expertise to understand how paper is made and what unique properties can be identified in altered documents. There is an untold story of evidence ready to be uncovered within the paper of altered documents. We are court-certified and qualified expert witnesses.