What are defenses against forgery charges?

Certain federal and state crimes prohibit a person from imitating a document or something valuable in order to defraud somebody of money or property. These crimes fall under the umbrella of forgery. Forging an item is something that can expose you to charges of fraud and could involve stiff penalties if convicted.

You might be afraid that if you reproduce something valuable, the law could come after you. However, to be guilty of forgery requires certain elements of the crime to be present. It is generally not enough to just reproduce an object.

Forgery and fraud

FindLaw explains that in many jurisdictions across the country, a person who creates an imitation must intend to use the imitation in the course of defrauding someone or to commit an act of larceny. In other words, if you reproduce a valuable work of art, you have committed no crime unless you represent the art as the authentic work or try to sell it off.

There are some possible defenses against charges of forgery. You might reproduce a work of art or a document in order to show off your artistic talent at reproduction to friends and family. You might also reproduce a valuable item or document for the purposes of satire or parody.

Ignorance of a forged item

It is also possible that you may become ensnared in a forger’s scheme without knowing it. Someone may have sold you a valuable piece of art that was actually a copy and did not inform you of the art’s true origin. You might also receive counterfeited money or documents without realizing it.

The law may suspect you of fraud if you try to sell these items. But if you were ignorant of the true nature of these items, you may have a strong defense against criminal charges. Whatever defense you will use will depend on the circumstances of your case.