Frequently Asked Questions
General Questions
What is forensic document examination?
Forensic document examination is the scientific analysis of documents to verify their authenticity, detect alterations or forgeries, and identify authorship or handwriting.
Who can benefit from forensic document examination services?
Forensic document examination services can benefit a wide range of individuals,
organizations, and legal entities. Here’s a breakdown of who might use these
services and why:
1. Law Enforcement
- Purpose: To investigate suspected forgeries, counterfeit documents,
anonymous letters, or altered records. - Common Cases: Fraud, identity theft, counterfeits, malicious mail.
2. Legal Professionals
- Purpose: To support litigation with expert analysis of questioned documents.
- Common Cases: Will disputes, contract fraud, signature verification, cases
involving questioned financial records.
3. Businesses and Corporations
- Purpose: To detect document fraud, authenticate contracts, and investigate
internal misconduct, and to authenticate official records. - Common Cases: Forged records, altered invoices, fraudulent agreements,
disputed contracts, and quality control record analyse.
4. Insurance Companies
- Purpose: To identify fraudulent claims or forged documents submitted in
support of a claim. - Common Cases: Questioned certificates, forged policy documents, or claim
receipts.
5. Financial Institutions
- Purpose: To prevent and investigate cheque fraud, loan document
tampering, or signature forgeries on agreements. - Common Cases: Forged endorsements, altered financial records, disputed
loan contracts/mortgages.
6. Private Individuals
- Purpose: To prove the authenticity or forgery of personal documents.
- Common Cases: Disputes over wills, contract agreements, letters, or other
personal records
What types of documents can you analyse?
Forensic document examiners can analyse a wide variety of documents, especially
when questions of authenticity, alteration, or authorship are involved. Here’s a list of
some common types of documents that can be examined:
Handwritten Documents
- Letters and notes (including anonymous notes)
- Signatures (e.g., on cheques, contracts, or wills)
- Diaries or journals
- Forms filled out by hand
Printed and Typed Documents
- Contracts and agreements
- Business records
- Typed letters and memos
- Receipts and invoices
- Certificates (e.g., birth, marriage, death, education)
- Passports and identity documents
Financial Documents
- Loan applications
- Credit card applications
- Tax returns and financial statements
Legal Documents
- Contracts
- Wills and Agreements
- Power of attorney
- Court filings
- Settlement agreements
Each type of document may require a different approach—handwriting comparison,
ink or paper analysis, printer identification, or signs of tampering.
Note: It is always preferable to have an original questioned document made
available for forensic examination, however, in cases where this is not possible,
examination of a good quality photocopied document may be sufficient to give a
useful result, although this may not be conclusive
Services Provided
Forensic Docexam Ireland Limited provide expertise in the area of Suspect Document Analysis and Handwriting & Signature Examination and Verification. They carry out Forensic Examinations on such documents, and prepare detailed Technical Reports to be used in Legal disputes.
Process & Fees
On receipt of an enquiry from a client an estimate of costs will be prepared and a quote provided. This cost must be agreed by the client before work commences, and full payment is to be made on the completion of a Technical Report.
Providing Oral Expert Evidence at any subsequent Legal Hearing will be charged separately at a daily rate and invoiced accordingly.
Confidentiality and Trust
All items and information received in the course of this business will be treated with the utmost respect and in the strictest of confidence, and will only be used for the purpose intended, ie. carrying out Forensic Examinations and preparing Technical Reports on behalf of customers of Forensic Docexam Ireland Ltd.
Acreditations
