Forgery is the criminal offense of making or uttering a false document or other instrument with the intent to defraud or harm someone—including a written or printed document, money, coins, tokens, stamps, checks, cashier’s checks, bonds, money orders, traveler’s checks, real property deeds, contracts, stock certificates, lottery tickets, wills, seals, credit cards, badges, trademarks, and symbols of value, right, privilege, or identification. Uttering a document means to declare—either directly or indirectly, and through words or actions—that the document is legitimate and what it purports to be.

Forging a document includes altering, making, completing, executing, or authenticating a writing so it purports (1) to be the act of another who did not authorize that act; (2) to have been executed at a time or place or in a numbered sequence other than was in fact the case; or (3) to be a copy of an original when no such original existed.

Forging a document also includes the acts of issuing, transferring, registering the transfer of, recording, passing, publishing, or otherwise uttering a document that is forged. And in some states the mere possession of a forged document with the intent to utter it constitutes forging a document.

The definitions, penalties, and punishments for the crime of forgery vary from state to state and are generally located in a state’s statutes—often in the penal or criminal code.

In New Jersey, forgery is defined under N.J.S.A. 2C:21-1 and is considered a crime involving the creation, alteration, or use of a false document with the intent to defraud or harm another party. This includes a wide range of documents and instruments such as checks, contracts, identification cards, and legal certificates. The act of uttering a forged document, which means presenting or using it as if it were genuine, is also covered under this statute. The severity of the offense in New Jersey can range from a disorderly persons offense to a second-degree crime, depending on factors such as the type of document forged and the intent behind the forgery. For example, forging government documents or currency typically results in more severe charges. Additionally, mere possession of a forged document with the intent to use it can also constitute forgery. Penalties for forgery in New Jersey can include fines, restitution, and imprisonment, with the potential for more severe punishment for higher-degree offenses.