Meeting/Event Information
Altered Documents in Legal Cases Virtual Meeting 1/27/2026
The LA and IE ACFE Chapters are pleased to host Mike Wakshull as he presents on the topic of Little Known Secrets About Altered Documents in Legal Cases.
Forensic document examiners are often retained to determine whether a document has been altered. Alterations are made in many ways. The person making the alteration believes they are clever enough to avoid detection. Usually they leave traces of their misdeeds behind. This presentation offers an overview to attorneys to different types of alterations encountered by document examiners and methods of detecting the alterations.
- Altered documents deeds filed with the county recorder
- Alteration of a mortgage document
- Is the check altered or counterfeit
- Is the PDF document legitimate
- Tools used by forensic document examiners to look for alterations
- Alteration of Computer generated documents
- Why must the document examiner be able to distinguish computer generated documents?
- Discovery of cut-and-paste signatures
- Alteration of medical records
- Alteration of email
- Is the Word document as purported?
- Examining signatures written on digital tablets
- Tools used by document examiners in non-handwriting examinations
- The future of forensic document examination
Mike Wakshull is a court-qualified forensic document examiner located in Temecula, CA. He has been qualified as an expert witness in California Superior Courts and Federal District Court, testifying in cases involving will contests, contract disputes and others. His master’s degree project focused on bias in managerial decisions. He has authored two books on the topic of forensic document examination: Forensic Document Examination for Legal Professionals and The End of the Zodiac Mystery. Mike has presented at conferences such as international forensics conferences, California Lawyers Association, and California District Attorneys Association. He is vice president of Scientific Association of Forensic Examiners and is a member of the National Speaker’s Association.
Mike can be reached at [email protected] and https://quality9.com.
