Tag: probate

Can a Forensic Expert Still Identify a Forgery If a Signature Changes Over Time

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Los Angeles Forensic Handwriting Expert: Can Forgery Be Identified If a Signature Changes?

Can a Los Angeles Forensic Expert Identify a Forgery If a Signature Changes Over Time?

Yes. Signature changes over time are completely normal—and they are expected in professional forensic handwriting analysis.

This question comes up frequently in Los Angeles legal cases, including probate disputes, real estate litigation, contract challenges, and elder financial abuse matters:

  • “What if my signature looks different now than it did years ago?”
  • “Can an old signature still be compared accurately today?”

The short answer is simple: this is exactly what forensic document examiners are trained to do.

Do Signatures and Handwriting Change Over Time?

Yes. Handwriting and signatures can evolve gradually throughout a person’s life. Common reasons include:

  • Age and physical development
  • Name changes due to marriage or divorce
  • Career or writing habit changes
  • Major life events or psychological stress
  • Medical or neurological conditions

For example, handwriting often changes significantly between adolescence and early adulthood as fine motor control develops. Later in life, changes tend to be more subtle.

Importantly, these changes occur within a predictable range of natural variation.

How Los Angeles Forensic Handwriting Experts Evaluate Signature Changes

Professional forensic document examiners do not rely on a single signature or one isolated document.

Instead, they establish a baseline of authentic variation by examining:

  • Known genuine signatures spanning many years or decades
  • Writing samples before and after major life events
  • Multiple documents created under normal, real-world conditions

In many Los Angeles cases, experts analyze handwriting samples covering 20 to 30 years of a person’s writing history.

What Does Not Change in Genuine Handwriting

While surface appearance may evolve, certain identifying characteristics remain remarkably consistent:

  • Neuromuscular movement patterns
  • Stroke order and writing rhythm
  • Pen lifts, hesitations, and transitions
  • Line quality and pressure habits
  • Microscopic ink deposits and striations

These features are governed by physiology and biomechanics—not conscious control.

You cannot successfully fake another person’s neuromuscular handwriting system.

Why Original Documents Matter in Los Angeles Forgery Cases

The most reliable forensic conclusions come from examining original documents.

Using magnification and microscopy, forensic experts can identify:

  • Pen speed variations
  • Ink flow interruptions
  • Natural tremor versus simulated tremor
  • Microscopic pauses invisible in copies

Photocopies, scans, and faxed documents remove much of this critical forensic evidence.

Can Forgery Still Be Identified Despite Signature Changes?

Absolutely.

When sufficient genuine writing samples are available, a Los Angeles forensic handwriting expert can:

  • Differentiate natural variation from forgery
  • Identify disguised or slowly drawn signatures
  • Detect tracing, patching, and hesitation patterns
  • Provide a defensible, court-admissible expert opinion

If the findings support your legal position, the opinion may be presented through:

  • A written forensic report
  • A sworn declaration or affidavit
  • Live expert testimony in Los Angeles courts

Why Los Angeles Courts Rely on Forensic Handwriting Experts

Judges value independent experts who rely on science—not speculation.

A qualified forensic handwriting examiner provides:

  • Objective, unbiased analysis
  • Court-accepted forensic methodology
  • Clear explanations for judges, attorneys, and juries

This credibility often plays a decisive role in legal outcomes.

Final Takeaway

Signatures may change over time—but the underlying handwriting system does not.

That is why trained forensic document examiners can account for natural variation and still determine whether a signature is authentic or forged.

If you are involved in a Los Angeles legal dispute involving a questioned signature, do not guess. Obtain a professional forensic handwriting analysis.

What do you do if you think someone Forged Your Parents Last Will and Testament?

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The death of your parents is a difficult time. Dealing with the probate court and a possible forged will is also a burden many children across the globe must deal with. This short article tells you how.

If you’re reading this, you’re probably in the unfortunate situation of having one of your parents pass away, and you’re stuck dealing with the last will and testament.

If the signature on the Last Will and Testament or those Trust documents doesn’t look like an authentic signature, this article is for you.

My name is Bart Baggett and my company (Handwriting Experts Inc) http://handwritingexpertusa.com  deals with probate cases every day.  We deal with signatures, trusts, deeds, and Will.   

Oftentimes, it is in the case where someone has passed away and the entire estate rest in the hands of the probate court judge.  Your parent’s house, cards, jewelry, and the entire estate can be handed to the idiot step-child if the judge thinks that is the last wishes of your parents. 

It’s our burden to figure out our parents’ stuff. And unfortunately, it’s really, really common for brothers, sisters, uncles, and caretakers to forge wills and take everything— and I mean everything!

So, you’re not alone in this situation. And I know it’s confusing. If you’re not an attorney, then this will be very helpful for you. I’ll walk you through how we work with probate cases and how a court-qualified handwriting expert can help you during the process.

At Handwriting Experts Inc., we are document examiners. We take handwriting samples of the decedent—your mom or your dad—and we determine if indeed the will for this person has been forged.

Here are the steps we follow to determine if a Last Will and Testament has been forged.

  1. Is there a document with the original, or “wet”, signature?

Often times in a probate case, there’s an actual wet, or original, signature sitting at the courthouse with a will. But that’s not always true. If it’s possible to get access to that will, I’ll personally come with my microscope. Or, one of my people will come into the courthouse, take photographs of it, and make sure that it’s a wet signature.

This is a blue pen on paper. See how the ink flows onto the paper. This is magnified 20x through a stereo microscope.
This is not wet ink. This the output from a color print. Can you see the red and yellow dots?
  1. Compare the signature on the will with other samples of the decedent’s signature.

Next, we’ll compare those signatures to other samples of your parent’s handwriting—their passport, visa, checkbook, birth certificates, wedding certificates, etc. We’ll look for their known handwriting. Your that’s your job is to find their known handwriting. And then, we will compare it.

  1. Determine if the signature on the will is authentic or if it has been forged.

We’re handwriting experts. I’ve been doing this for 30 years; I’ll know for sure whether that signature is forged. Even if the parent was really sick, had Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s, we can take all that into consideration. And it’s impossible to slip a forgery past trained eyes.

So, once I or my team does that job, we decide if a forgery happened. If it did, we’ll write a declaration. And if you need, we’ll come to court and testify on your behalf. 

If this is a service that you need, the pricing is on our website.

Whether you deal with me or any of our experts, or any expert in the country for that matter, the process is pretty much the same. In order to prove a forgery in court, you’re going to have to hire a forensic handwriting expert, and they’re going to have to be court qualified. They’re going to have to testify. Otherwise, it’s just your word against his or hers.

And that’s the process of how you handle the determination of a forgery of a will and testament in court.

If you need our help, please reach out. Our main website is handwritingexperts.com. You can hire any of our professional experts on the website. If you want to hire me directly, go to handwritingexpertusa.com.

We have offices around the country, and we’ll travel to you to help you through this difficult time.  While we know the circumstances for needing our services are not the best, at least you can rest knowing the wishes of your loved one have been fulfilled.