Forging a signature on a document – ​​how to succeed in a lawsuit for forging a signature?

What is signature forgery?

Signature forgery is a situation in which a person acts in a manner Notice And intentionally in order to deceive A third party using a document that is not authentic. The fraud is manifested in a third party receiving a document that is purported to be signed by someone who did not actually sign it, and is likely unaware of the existence of the document.

As a result of that forged signature, the person committing the fraud can receive assets or services free of charge, and the person who will actually have to pay is the person whose signature was forged. The purpose of forgery will always be to receive something that the forger of the signature does not actually deserve.

There is no doubt that forging a signature on a document or forging a signature on a check or contract may cause great harm to the person whose signature was forged.The question arises: what can a person whose signature has been forged do, and can he file a lawsuit for forging a signature, and who even needs to prove that it is a forged signature? The answers are provided later in this article.

How is counterfeiting defined in law?

Before we start talking about forging a signature on a document or forgery Signing a contract For any reason, we must first understand how the law defines forgery. Forgery is defined in Section 414 of the Penal Code:

"זיוף" – אחת מאלה:

(1) Making a document purport to be something it is not, and it is likely to be misleading;

(2) Altering a document – ​​including adding or omitting an item – with intent to deceive, or without lawful authority and in a manner that appears to be as if the alteration were made with lawful authority;

(3) Signing a document in the name of a person without lawful authority, or in a fictitious name, in a manner that may appear as if the document was signed by a person;

In these cases, you can file a lawsuit for forging a signature, but it is always worth remembering that it is not enough to show that the signature is forged; you must also show, in most cases, that you suffered damage as a result of the forgery.

1: Contact the police and file a complaint about forged signature

Signature forgery is not only relevant to the submission of Civil lawsuit or Financial claim Rather, this is an issue that requires contacting the police because it involves a violation of several sections of thePenal Law:

Article 418:

Forgery – 418. Whoever forges a document is liable to one year's imprisonment; whoever forges a document with the intent to obtain something through it is liable to three years' imprisonment; and if the offense was committed under aggravated circumstances, he is liable to five years' imprisonment.

Article 419:

419. Whoever forges a document containing information about a person or corporation with intent to defraud, shall be liable to imprisonment for three years; it is immaterial, for this purpose, whether the person or corporation existed or not, or whether the corporation was about to be founded but was not founded.

Article 420:

420. Whoever presents or issues a forged document or uses it in any other way, knowing that it is forged, is liable to the same punishment as one who forges the document.

Even if the Israel Police do not investigate your complaint (as is very often the case), at the very least you will have confirmation of filing a complaint for forgery with the police, which may help you prove your claims regarding the forgery that was committed, as part of legal proceedings that will be conducted in court.

2: Inform the relevant bodies about the forged document

For example in the case of Transferring funds from a bank account Without permission, your signature on the document confirming the transfer may have been forged.

In case of execution Credit card fraud It is possible that a credit card was originally issued in your name based on the submission of Forged documents or forgery of a signature. In most cases this will be Telephone fraud.

In these cases, you should contact the bank or credit card company and immediately notify them that it is not your signature.

3: Check what damage you suffered as a result of signature forgery

Before you rush to file a lawsuit in court, it is important to understand what exactly you want to sue for. For example, if your signature was forged on an agreement, it is important to understand what damage you suffered as a result of that forgery. For example, were you forced to pay money as a result of that forged signature, or were you perhaps deprived of any rights as a result of the forgery of your signature?

Forging a signature is intended to achieve some goal, and you need to understand what that goal is. Once you understand the goal of the person who forged your signature, you can decide on the best course of action against that person.

4: Before filing a lawsuit for signature forgery, it is important to collect appropriate evidence.

The burden of proof to prove that a signature is forged varies from case to case and depending on the parties' claims. There will be cases where the plaintiff will have to prove that the signature is forged, and there will be cases where the defendant will have to prove that the signature is forged.

If you are considering filing a lawsuit for forged signature, you should consider contacting a graphologist (a professional who specializes in handwriting who can examine the style of your signature and determine whether it is a forgery or not) before filing. Claim To the court.

If a graphologist does determine that your signature is forged, you should consider attaching Expert opinion on his behalf to the statement of claim. Once an expert opinion is filed with the statement of claim and determines that the signature is forged, the chances of success of the claim increase significantly. Furthermore, if the defendant does not file an expert opinion on his behalf regarding the forgery of the signature, this will further increase your chances of success.

דבר נוסף שכדאי לבצע לפני הגשת תביעה על זיוף חתימה הוא לנסות לדובב את האדם שטוען שחתימתכם אותנטית. אפשר לעשות זאת באמצעות שיחה מוקלטת או התכתבויות SMS/וואטסאפ/דוא"ל (העיקר שתהיה ראיה בכתב).

As part of the dubbing process, try to understand why he claims that the signature is authentic, when in his opinion you signed the document, where the document was signed, whether the document was signed in front of other people, etc. For example, if the person who claims that your signature is not forged claims to you that you signed on a specific date in front of certain people, you can present data that you were not in Israel at all on that date or that you did not meet with those people at all.

The dubbing operation may seem impossible in some cases, but you would be surprised in how many cases you can obtain data following that dubbing operation that will prove that a signature forgery has indeed been committed.

5: Filing a lawsuit for signature forgery in court

After you have followed the steps outlined above, you are ready to file a lawsuit for signature forgery in court. It is advisable to use the services of a Civil lawyer Experienced attorney who has previously handled claims of this type and is knowledgeable about the burden of proof when a claim of forgery is made.

There are many (and sometimes contradictory) rulings from various courts on this matter, so relevant legal knowledge on the issue of signature forgery will definitely increase your chances of success.

The court may examine a forged signature without a graphologist's opinion.

It is important to know that in certain cases, and usually not complex ones, the court may examine a forged signature and decide the matter even without a graphologist's opinion.

ראו לדוגמה פסיקת בית המשפט בעניין זיוף חתימה במסגרת תאד"מ 30680-03-23 חאג' סייף נ' רכב אסף ואליאור בע"מ:

Beyond necessity, I would like to point out that the opinion raises difficulties. First, the plaintiff did not present any evidence that could support the opinion. Second, a review of the opinion indicates that the signature examined is from a photocopy and not from an original document. Therefore, the firm assertions therein raise doubts.

נוסף לכך, בעין לא מקצועית ניתן לראות שבין החתימות להן בוצעה ההשוואה בחוות הדעת לשם הפרטי של התובע שנכתב בטופס, יש דמיון רב. (בעניין יכולת בית המשפט לבחון מחלוקת שאינה מורכבת בעניין זיוף כתב יד, באופן עצמאי באמצעות מבחני הגיון ושכל ישר, ראו: ע"א 1986/92‏ ‎ מדינת ישראל‎ ‎נ' אבו סאלח, פ"ד נ(1) 499 (1996), עמ' 508; ע"א 2032/06 ‏ האגי נ' עזבון המנוח סלמאן יוסף זיאן, עמ' 12 (1.2.09); ע"א 5293/90 בנק הפועלים בע"מ נ' שאול רחמים בע"מ, פ"ד מז(3) 240, 249 (1993), עמ' 262).

Frequently Asked Questions Regarding Forging a Signature on a Document

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