Why I Love Jury Trials
Why I Love Jury Trials
I love jury trials. And if you’re an attorney, you should too.
I just testified in front of a jury at the downtown courthouse, and honestly, it was a blast. I love being in the room. The judge is clear with the jury, gives them his instructions, and still leaves real room to maneuver. I can turn and ask permission to elaborate, because he wants the jury to understand — especially the forensic terms.
For example, I defined “forgery” as a crime, not just a verb. Explaining an electronic transfer was easy. “Judge, may I define that?” You get to speak in plain, relatable language you’d never reach for if you were only answering narrow direct questions.
Why Jury Trials Work in Your Favor
In a bench trial, judges can box you in. It turns into, “Just answer the question, Mr. Baggett. Yes or no.” And opposing counsel tends to be sharper in a bench trial, especially in depositions.
In a jury trial, the other attorney usually softens, because they don’t want the jury to see them as the bully. If the judge dislikes you, that’s one problem. If the jury dislikes the defendant — or the opposing attorney — it can go very badly for that side. So everyone shows up on their best behavior. Even when opposing counsel questioned my credentials, the tone stayed professional and respectful.
In this case, like most, my credentials were stipulated, because I’m rock-solid on the stand. Jury trials are a great choice — if you have the right expert witness.
Here’s what most people miss. Plenty of experts write excellent, accurate technical reports. The real question is how they perform on the stand. Do they seem trustworthy and likable? Do they look the jury in the eye? Do they know how to work a room?
The Expert Who Can Win a Room
That’s exactly where many forensic experts — experts of every kind — fall short.
There’s a scene in Dexter where the main character, a brilliant blood-spatter analyst, takes the stand. The analytical, engineering-type mind isn’t always the mind that can hold a jury’s attention and talk to people like people. Jurors aren’t stupid. They just don’t know what the expert knows. You can’t talk down to them. You meet them where they are, and you watch for the nods. The nods are what I’m looking for.
Sometimes I’ll say, “You know how you have this in your house?” or “Remember this from high school?” I describe things in familiar terms. Years ago I described a handwriting feature this way: “It’s not a technical term, but it looks kind of like a roof — you know how the overhang sends water down and away? It’s like that.” The jury got it instantly. You couldn’t do that with much freedom in a bench trial, where they want strict, technical terminology.
My suggestion is simple. If you’re hiring an expert witness, hire the best one you can afford. But if the case might go to trial — especially a jury trial in a Tarrant or Dallas County courtroom — pick someone you’ve actually spoken with on the phone, maybe a quick Zoom call, and confirmed presents well.
I had a Zoom trial once. I showed up with good lighting, a clear delivery, and I knew how to drive the software. The other expert showed up late and fought with the technology — fumbling controls, struggling with the sound. In a trial, that kind of fumbling sends a quiet but damaging message to the jury about competence and preparation.
Presentation Matters
When someone looks disorganized or unprepared, it can undercut the perception of their analysis. An expert witness has to be likable and trustworthy. “Trustworthy” means walking in without an agenda. They may be hired by one side, but if the facts were different, they’d say, “The facts don’t support your position. You may not need me.”
That belief has to be genuine. It’s not acting — it’s integrity. You want someone ethical, with no disciplinary issues or a questionable record. But more than that, can they explain things clearly and concisely? That’s the key.
At Handwriting Experts Inc., we train our experts hard. We do jury training and witness-stand preparation, because we want them as articulate as possible. That way, when the evidence lines up with your narrative, we can show up to court and help you win that case — by telling the truth.
Once we confirm a narrative matches the evidence, we want to help people win. We just won’t help someone who’s lying win. Almost half the time, we tell attorneys the evidence doesn’t support what their client is saying. Sometimes it’s inconclusive. Sometimes the quality or quantity isn’t strong enough to carry the case. And we’re honest about that.
Handwriting Experts Inc. — Dallas–Fort Worth
539 W. Commerce St #1396, Dallas, TX 75208-1953
Call or text: 214-614-8122
Have a questioned signature or document? Tell us what you have, and we’ll help you see what the evidence actually shows.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why do expert witnesses prefer jury trials?
There’s more room to explain. A judge can leave real latitude to define forensic terms in plain, relatable language, while bench trials can box the expert into strict yes-or-no answers with rigid technical terminology.
How does a jury change opposing counsel’s behavior?
Opposing attorneys usually soften in front of a jury because they don’t want to be seen as the bully. If a jury dislikes the opposing attorney, it can go very badly for that side — so everyone shows up on their best behavior.
What matters most in a trial expert beyond the report?
Performance on the stand. Plenty of experts write excellent technical reports; the real questions are whether they seem trustworthy and likable, look the jury in the eye, and can explain things clearly without talking down.
How should attorneys vet an expert for a jury trial?
Talk with them by phone or a quick Zoom call and confirm they present well. Even in remote trials, lighting, clear delivery, and command of the technology send the jury a quiet message about competence and preparation.
- Published in articles, Forensic Document Examination
How Long Does a Forensic Handwriting Analysis Case Take?
How Long Does a Forensic Handwriting Analysis Case Take?
Once you hire a forensic document examiner, how soon can you expect results? The honest answer is that it depends almost entirely on you.
Let me walk you through what actually happens after you hire us, how long each stage runs, and why rushing the process is almost always a mistake.
What the Work Actually Involves
Most of the work is labeling, organizing, and scanning. If you want a polished report, add photographing the documents, building exhibits, and labeling all of it.
We have staff for that labor. They can spend eighteen hours just organizing and labeling the evidence. I personally spend around four hours on the lab work, the report, and finishing the exhibits.
If you’re paying by the hour, the size of the pile doesn’t change much — you’re billed for time, not page count. For perspective, experienced attorneys charge $850 an hour or more. Our support staff costs considerably less, which is why a flat rate or retainer can work in your favor.
If you’re not working with our office, ask whoever you do hire whether they offer a flat rate or a retainer, then figure out which one costs you less over the life of the case.
Why the Timeline Is Mostly in Your Hands
The bottom line is simple. Hire the best, most qualified expert you can afford, make sure they’re court-qualified — and then get the evidence into their hands as fast as possible. The sooner we have everything organized, the sooner we turn it around.
We tell most clients the same thing. If court isn’t this week, give us three weeks, and that’s enough time to deliver a thorough, polished report. If court is next week, you’re already behind the eight ball — call someone immediately. We rarely take a case where the court date is less than two days out.
Most clients are surprised how much of the timeline they control. The single biggest factor in how fast we deliver is how fast you get us organized, high-quality evidence. A Collin County will contest moves at the speed the file comes together.
Why We Don’t Take Rush Cases
The reason is straightforward. We don’t yet know whether we can help you. We won’t take your money and guarantee an outcome before we’ve looked at the case.
We’re independent expert witnesses. Our job is to articulate the truth. If that truth helps you, great — we’ll go to court. If it helps the other side instead, they’ll never know you hired us, and we won’t go to court against you. That’s simply not how we work. But we can’t go to bat for you until the case and the data are in our hands and the evidence holds up.
Handwriting Experts Inc. — Dallas–Fort Worth
539 W. Commerce St #1396, Dallas, TX 75208-1953
Call or text: 214-614-8122
Have a questioned signature or document? Tell us what you have, and we’ll help you see what the evidence actually shows.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does a forensic handwriting analysis case take?
It depends almost entirely on you. If court isn’t this week, three weeks is enough for a thorough, polished report — the single biggest factor is how fast you deliver organized, high-quality evidence.
What does the work actually involve?
Mostly labeling, organizing, and scanning — staff can spend eighteen hours just organizing evidence, while the examiner spends around four hours on lab work, the report, and exhibits. Photography and exhibit-building add more.
Is a flat rate or hourly retainer cheaper?
If you pay hourly, the size of the pile matters less than time spent, and support staff cost far less than the examiner. Ask whoever you hire whether they offer a flat rate or retainer, and figure out which costs less over the life of the case.
Why won’t examiners take rush cases?
Because they don’t yet know whether they can help you. Independent expert witnesses won’t take money or guarantee an outcome before examining the case — and they rarely accept cases with a court date less than two days out.
- Published in Forensic Document Examination, Weekly Newsletters
Do I Need Original Documents or Are Scans or Photocopies Fine for a Handwriting Case?
Do I Need Original Documents, or Are Scans and Photocopies Fine for a Handwriting Case?
When you’re trying to prove whether a signature is real, two things carry the weight: the quality of the evidence and how much of it you have. Hand me originals — and plenty of them — and I can move faster.
That speed shows up on your bill. More clean evidence means I get to the truth sooner, and it means I can hold my ground when a cross-examining attorney tries to argue the evidence wasn’t enough.
When Originals Simply Aren’t Available
So yes, gather as many originals as you can. But here’s the honest part — not every case has them.
If you’re dealing with a will or a marriage certificate from 1972, the only surviving copy may be sitting in a county records office, and it’s a photocopy or a frame of microfiche. That’s common. In a Tarrant County probate matter, the version on file is often all anyone can lay hands on.
I once examined a marriage certificate from Mexico City dated 1959. All that existed was whatever remained in the county records. These days, originals are the exception, not the rule. What we really want is the best available evidence.
So it changes things, but the core answer holds. If your scan is high resolution, you can still get a valid opinion. And by valid, I mean one that stands up in court.
There are different levels of opinion. One of them is “inconclusive,” and that’s a poor outcome. It’s technically still an opinion, but it helps no one. My goal is always a definitive conclusion — authentic or not — and the reliable way to get there is with enough handwriting samples.
How to Get Your Case Moving Quickly
Here’s the practical part. Yes, we can work from the scan, and we want to start with the scan. That way we’re on your case instead of waiting seven or eight days for something to ship across Dallas–Fort Worth or arrive at our office.
We can form an opinion from a copy. If the copy is good, the opinion is stronger. And every supporting document can be a copy, scan, or photocopy too.
We’ve handled plenty of cases with nothing but photocopies. Ideal evidence and best-available evidence aren’t always the same thing. You work with what you have, and a skilled examiner pulls as much as possible out of whatever you can give us.
Handwriting Experts Inc. — Dallas–Fort Worth
539 W. Commerce St #1396, Dallas, TX 75208-1953
Call or text: 214-614-8122
Have a questioned signature or document? Tell us what you have, and we’ll help you see what the evidence actually shows.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need original documents for a handwriting case?
Gather as many originals as you can — but not every case has them. If your scan is high resolution, you can still get a valid opinion, meaning one that stands up in court. What matters most is the best available evidence.
Why do originals speed up a case?
More clean evidence gets to the truth sooner — which shows up on your bill — and lets the examiner hold their ground when a cross-examining attorney argues the evidence wasn’t enough.
What if the only copy is at a county records office?
That’s common — a will or 1972 marriage certificate may survive only as a photocopy or microfiche frame on file. Originals are the exception these days; skilled examiners pull as much as possible from whatever exists.
Should I wait for originals before starting?
No — start with the scan so the examiner is on your case instead of waiting a week for shipping. An opinion can be formed from a copy, supporting documents can all be copies, and better copies simply make the opinion stronger.
- Published in Forensic Document Examination, Weekly Newsletters
What Should You Send to a Handwriting Expert to Get Your Case Started?
What Should You Send to a Handwriting Expert to Get Your Case Started?
The moment you retain a handwriting expert, the most important thing you can do is start gathering evidence. That evidence might be a box of papers, a stack of Christmas cards, or an email with a folder of scans uploaded to Google Drive or Dropbox. Either way, most cases involve an original—or a copy of the original, like a scan, a PDF, or the documents themselves.
What Counts as Usable Evidence
You can simply photograph the evidence with your phone, as long as the resolution is good. The one thing I’ll say—whether you’re hiring me, my firm, or one of our experts—is that our testimony performs better when the evidence is better. Strong evidence doesn’t just support our findings. It equips us to hold up against a cross-examining attorney.
You might assume that sending more documents drives up your cost. It doesn’t. We don’t charge more if you send 100 samples instead of 5. Our pricing is based on the number of questioned documents in your case—not the number of comparison samples you send us.
A Concrete Example
Say it’s your grandmother, and she’s no longer with us. Dig through boxes, attic storage, and old files. Look for birthday cards, letters, checks—anything she signed or wrote while she was alive. The more samples you find, the stronger our analysis will be.
How to Get Your Evidence to Us
We want the best evidence available, and we’ll get it the best way we can. Whether you upload it digitally or send it by FedEx, getting it into our hands quickly is what moves your case forward. If you need us to come look at something in person—say, originals held at a Dallas County courthouse—absolutely, our experts can do that. It just costs more, because time is money.
Send the documents. Email them, mail them, send them by horse, send them by pigeon. Just get us lots of evidence.
Handwriting Experts Inc. — Dallas–Fort Worth
539 W. Commerce St #1396, Dallas, TX 75208-1953
Call or text: 214-614-8122
Have a questioned signature or document? Tell us what you have, and we’ll help you see what the evidence actually shows.
Frequently Asked Questions
What should you send a handwriting expert to start a case?
Start gathering evidence the moment you retain the expert — a box of papers, a stack of Christmas cards, or a folder of scans uploaded to Google Drive or Dropbox. Most cases involve an original or a copy of it: scans, PDFs, or the documents themselves.
Can I just photograph the documents with my phone?
Yes, as long as the resolution is good. Better evidence makes for better testimony — strong evidence equips the expert to hold up against a cross-examining attorney.
Does sending more samples cost more?
No. Pricing is based on the number of questioned documents in your case, not the number of comparison samples — 100 samples cost the same as 5, and more samples make the analysis stronger.
Where do I find handwriting samples of a deceased relative?
Dig through boxes, attic storage, and old files for birthday cards, letters, checks — anything they signed or wrote. Send it digitally or by mail; if originals are held at a courthouse, experts can examine them in person at added cost.
- Published in Forensic Document Examination, Weekly Newsletters
Can a Handwriting Expert Really Help Win a Legal Case?
Can a Handwriting Expert Really Help Win a Legal Case?
The short answer is yes—with one important qualification. The right handwriting expert, chosen carefully and brought in early, can make a decisive difference in how a case unfolds.
What the Examiner Actually Does
A forensic document examiner analyzes disputed documents—wills, notes, contracts—to determine whether they’re authentic and where they came from. The findings become objective, evidence-based testimony a judge or jury can weigh.
Here’s the part people sometimes misunderstand. We’re not hired to help one side win. We’re hired to find the truth about how a document was created and sourced, and to tell it—whichever way it falls. That neutrality is exactly what gives the testimony weight in a Tarrant County courtroom or anywhere else.
What Makes an Expert Effective
Forensic examiners can look at a wide range of contested documents: wills, suicide notes, threatening letters, anonymous correspondence, and signatures in dispute.
But technical skill alone doesn’t win the day. An effective expert witness also has to be competent, articulate, and able to withstand cross-examination without coming apart. That’s why hiring the most qualified expert you can afford tends to improve courtroom outcomes—not because of a title, but because of how they hold up when challenged.
Handwriting Experts Inc. — Dallas–Fort Worth
539 W. Commerce St #1396, Dallas, TX 75208-1953
Call or text: 214-614-8122
Have a questioned signature or document? Tell us what you have, and we’ll help you see what the evidence actually shows.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a handwriting expert really help win a legal case?
Yes — with one important qualification. The right handwriting expert, chosen carefully and brought in early, can make a decisive difference in how a case unfolds.
What does the examiner actually do for the case?
A forensic document examiner analyzes disputed documents — wills, notes, contracts — to determine authenticity and origin. The findings become objective, evidence-based testimony a judge or jury can weigh.
Is the expert hired to help one side win?
No. Experts are hired to find the truth about how a document was created and sourced, and to tell it — whichever way it falls. That neutrality is exactly what gives the testimony weight in court.
What makes an expert witness effective beyond technical skill?
They must be competent, articulate, and able to withstand cross-examination without coming apart. Hiring the most qualified expert you can afford improves outcomes — not because of a title, but because of how they hold up when challenged.
- Published in Forensic Document Examination, Weekly Newsletters
How Do I Choose the Right Handwriting Expert for My Case?
How Do I Choose the Right Handwriting Expert for My Case?
If you’re an attorney or a client who needs a forensic handwriting expert for a legal case, you may be searching online and thinking, “This is confusing. I can’t tell who’s qualified and who isn’t.” So a lot of people do the easy thing. They hire the local person, or the cheapest one.
Why Cheapest or Nearest Is the Wrong Filter
Hiring on price or proximity alone is a poor strategy if your goal is to win. You want someone qualified, experienced, and credible in court—not simply the most convenient or least expensive name on the search results.
What you’re really looking for is a strong courtroom track record, a solid reputation among attorneys, and genuine time on the witness stand. Qualifications on paper matter. But so does presence—the ability to articulate findings clearly and hold a jury’s attention. Both count.
Match the Expert to the Case
You don’t always need the highest-priced expert in the field. The level of expertise depends on the situation. A letter disputing a signature with a mortgage company is not the same animal as a complex forgery case headed to trial. Match the expert’s experience to the scope of what you’re actually facing.
A local expert can make sense when original documents have to be examined in person—at a Dallas County courthouse, for instance—which reduces travel cost. But geography should never outrank quality. Experience and credibility come first.
Handwriting Experts Inc. — Dallas–Fort Worth
539 W. Commerce St #1396, Dallas, TX 75208-1953
Call or text: 214-614-8122
Have a questioned signature or document? Tell us what you have, and we’ll help you see what the evidence actually shows.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I choose the right handwriting expert for my case?
Look for a strong courtroom track record, a solid reputation among attorneys, and genuine time on the witness stand. Qualifications on paper matter — but so does presence: the ability to articulate findings clearly and hold a jury’s attention.
Why is hiring the cheapest or nearest expert a mistake?
Hiring on price or proximity alone is a poor strategy if your goal is to win. You want someone qualified, experienced, and credible in court — not simply the most convenient or least expensive name in the search results.
Do I always need the highest-priced expert?
No. Match the expert’s experience to the scope of what you’re facing — a letter disputing a signature with a mortgage company is not the same animal as a complex forgery case headed to trial.
When does a local expert make sense?
When original documents must be examined in person — at a county courthouse, for instance — which reduces travel cost. But geography should never outrank quality; experience and credibility come first.
- Published in articles, Forensic Document Examination
What Certifications Should a Forensic Document Examiner Have?
What Certifications Should a Forensic Document Examiner Have?
When you hire a forensic document examiner, two things matter most: certification and proficiency testing. Here’s what to look for, and why it matters. Even examiners who built their skills inside a government agency or through on-the-job training benefit from independent certification, because it confirms their competence through an objective third party—not just their own say-so.
How Certification Works
In 2005, I founded the first international school of forensics. It had a two-year curriculum—in-person instruction, online coursework, and audio training modules. We train people using three textbooks, and then they sit for certification tests.
We now have a 100-question certification test, and it’s not open-book. They have to take it. They have to pass it. On top of that, we recommend going to a proficiency testing center. Organizations around the world will simply send you documents and already know who signed them and who didn’t. We developed our own proficiency tests for the school—ten of them now.
Building a valid proficiency test is harder than it sounds. You have to know, with absolute certainty, who wrote what. To build ours, we recruited volunteers, carefully documented who wrote each sample and who forged the others, and used that controlled set to measure a student’s ability to determine authorship. So make sure your expert is trained in that, and that the certification comes from a reputable organization—like ours, an international school.
What to Ask, and Why
If someone has never passed a proficiency test, or doesn’t hold a certificate, you have to wonder what their training actually was.
Worth noting: formal training programs in this field are still rare worldwide. There wasn’t an international school dedicated to forensic document examination until I founded one. So for the last hundred years, nearly everyone has been trained through work and on-the-job experience.
When you’re evaluating a potential expert—say, for a Tarrant County document dispute—look for three things: a certificate from a recognized training program, evidence they’ve passed independent proficiency tests, and confirmation that a judge has court-qualified them as an expert witness. Together, those three tell you a great deal about whether that person will hold up under cross-examination.
Handwriting Experts Inc. — Dallas–Fort Worth
539 W. Commerce St #1396, Dallas, TX 75208-1953
Call or text: 214-614-8122
Have a questioned signature or document? Tell us what you have, and we’ll help you see what the evidence actually shows.
Frequently Asked Questions
What certifications should a forensic document examiner have?
Two things matter most: certification and proficiency testing. Even examiners trained inside a government agency benefit from independent certification, because it confirms competence through an objective third party — not just their own say-so.
How does certification work?
Reputable programs run a rigorous curriculum — textbooks, in-person instruction, online coursework — followed by a closed-book certification test (a 100-question exam that must be passed, not skimmed).
What is a proficiency test?
A controlled exercise where the testing organization already knows with certainty who wrote each document — built from carefully documented volunteer samples and forgeries — used to measure an examiner’s actual ability to determine authorship.
What should I ask a prospective examiner?
Whether they’ve passed a proficiency test and hold a certificate from a reputable organization. If they haven’t, you have to wonder what their training actually was — formal programs in this field are still rare worldwide.
- Published in Forensic Document Examination
How Do You Know If a Handwriting Expert is Actually Court-Qualified?
How Do You Know If a Handwriting Expert Is Actually Court-Qualified?
If you’re hiring an expert witness of any kind, this is one of the most important questions you can ask. Only about 1 in 10 of our cases actually goes to court—most people settle. Going to court is expensive. You risk losing, so sometimes you take less to be done with it. But you have to be ready either way, and that means hiring an expert who is court-qualified.
What Court-Qualified Actually Means
I’ve been to court 136 times. In every one of those cases, the judge reviewed my credentials and qualified me as an expert witness. That’s a 100% batting average—and that’s what you should look for.
Ask to see the CV. Find out how many times the person has testified and been court-qualified. Then ask the question most people forget: has any judge ever found them unqualified?
People hire us not just to write a report, but because we have to be ready and able to testify. If you hire an expert—especially a really cheap one, or a brand-new one who has never gone to court—there’s a chance they won’t get qualified. And here’s the trap. By the time you discover your expert can’t be qualified, it’s too late. You can’t go hire another one mid-trial.
What to Look for in a CV
Any forensic document expert my age or older will have attended seminars and events. I’ve gone to China. I’ve gone to Poland. I’ve sat through Zoom classes and taken courses at my police station. You’ll see that history of education, because there’s no single place to train and get certified in this field.
Let me give you a concrete example of a strong CV. One of the men who recently partnered with me in Phoenix spent 22 years on the Arizona police force. He’s a sheriff. That’s a great place to get training, and it carries real credibility, because he’s been on the witness stand hundreds of times for police-related cases.
He’s also a certified handwriting expert who attended our school, the International School of Forensic Documentation. He runs our Phoenix office. Good guy—Wade Voeltz. A very credible witness, because he brings both a law enforcement background and a record of being court-qualified.
When you sit down to interview a potential expert—whether for a Collin County will contest or any other matter—these are the three questions that matter most. “Are you court-qualified?” “Has any judge ever found you not qualified while you were sitting in that witness box?” “Are you the kind of person who would actually go to court?” Those are the right questions.
Handwriting Experts Inc. — Dallas–Fort Worth
539 W. Commerce St #1396, Dallas, TX 75208-1953
Call or text: 214-614-8122
Have a questioned signature or document? Tell us what you have, and we’ll help you see what the evidence actually shows.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you know if a handwriting expert is court-qualified?
Ask to see the CV, find out how many times they’ve testified and been court-qualified, and ask the question most people forget: has any judge ever found them unqualified? A 100% qualification record is what you should look for.
Why does court qualification matter if most cases settle?
Only about 1 in 10 cases actually goes to court — but you have to be ready either way. If your expert can’t be qualified, you discover it too late: you can’t hire another one mid-trial.
What’s the risk with cheap or brand-new experts?
An expert who has never gone to court may not get qualified by the judge — and that trap only springs once the trial is underway.
What does a strong examiner CV look like?
A history of education across seminars, courses, and training events — because there’s no single place to train in this field — plus credentials that carry courtroom credibility, such as decades in law enforcement or an established forensic practice.
- Published in Forensic Document Examination, Weekly Newsletters
How to Steal a House Without Getting Caught… Until You Get Murdered
How to Steal a House Without Getting Caught… Until You Get Murdered
This isn’t a heist movie. It’s worse. In real life, the villain wore a tailored suit and smiled in your face while he took your entire life savings.
It started with a murder. A man walked into a quiet office in a suburb of Toronto with a shotgun, and he left in a body bag. Two people he had confronted died too. But the bullets weren’t the real story.
The real story is what happened, and why. What drives a hardworking father—a home renovator with two kids—to pick up a hunting rifle and take three lives, including his own? It wasn’t rage. It wasn’t revenge. It was a fraud. Cold, calculated, and legally invisible.
The Investment That Started It All
They borrowed $1.2 million against their paid-off home to invest in something called private lending. They knew the rehab business. They were promised first position on the mortgage. What could go wrong?
The crook never filed the mortgage lien. The man they handed the money to was a professional scam artist with, by all accounts, decades of experience running schemes exactly like this one. A simple deep Google search on his name and his many aliases could have warned them. But they trusted him because he wore a nice suit and said all the right things. Now they’re both dead. It didn’t have to end that way.
Alan Kats and his wife thought they were playing it smart. The house was paid off. The market was booming. A friend told him, “Don’t buy another house and fix it up. You’re working too hard. Be the bank. Lend money. Get 10% returns and enjoy your retirement.”
Enter the wolf in mortgage-broker clothing. Kats and his wife were steered toward a broker who helped them pull nearly $1.4 million out of their home equity and funnel it into a web of private mortgages.
What they didn’t know: the web was spun by the broker’s husband, Arash Missaghi. A career con man whose name never appeared on a single document, yet who controlled everything. He hid behind LLCs, corporations, and shell companies.
The Invisible Puppet Master
Professional con men are smart. They hide their assets. They hide their criminal past. And if a mortgage lien isn’t registered, it doesn’t exist. You just burned $1.3 million into thin air. No security. No recourse. Nothing.
You think they didn’t call the police? They did. They called the FBI. But Alan Kats believed he had signed official mortgage agreements. He hadn’t. He had signed papers that were worthless, because the man never registered them. He thought corporate paperwork protected him. It didn’t. Every shell company was a puppet on Missaghi’s strings. When Kats started asking hard questions, he was introduced to a new man—Ariani. Soft voice. Big promises. Ariani was Missaghi. New name, same lies.
Here’s where it turns ugly. Missaghi used borrowed funds to pay off other debts—sometimes using one victim’s money to seize control of an asset, pay off another victim, force a sale, and pocket the proceeds. He walked away clean, over and over, for twenty years.
The victims were left with nothing. No property. No money. No justice. This is a classic Ponzi scheme dressed in mortgage-banker clothing. Same story, different asset class. Think Bernie Madoff—but houses instead of stocks.
Twenty years. Two dozen scams. Zero convictions. He was investigated. And despite a trail of wrecked lives, court records, court decisions, and financial carnage spanning two decades, Missaghi was never convicted in Canada or any other country.
Why? Because he never put his name on any piece of paper linking the crimes to him. He was an invisible puppet master, using straw men and fake names to do business and drain people’s life savings. Regulators couldn’t touch him. Police couldn’t pin it on him. And the victims were simply told, “Sorry. You should get a lawyer.”
Some got a lawyer. One man got a gun.
Alan Kats did what desperate people sometimes do when they’re backed into a corner with no options, no justice, and no hope. He didn’t just lose an investment. He lost his life savings, his home, his future. He lost faith in the system. He didn’t kill only for revenge—he killed to stop a predator from ruining more families. In the movies, they call that man a hero or a vigilante. In the news, he’s a crazed murderer. The truth, as always, is more complicated than either label. On the day he walked into that building, he left a handwritten note: stop these criminals from destroying people’s lives.
Was he a hero? Was he a murderer? Justice delayed is fraud enabled. I like to shine light on the silent epidemic of real estate fraud, forgery, and con men. Stealing homes from widows and families happens all the time.
What You Can Do to Protect Yourself
Don’t invest in Ponzi schemes. There are thousands of ways to build a retirement fund, and thousands more for someone to steal it from you or your family. The next time you hear the word “opportunity” and it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Don’t trust someone to do the work for you and mail you a check every month. Those deals do exist—but you’d better do your homework.
My name is Bart Baggett. I’m a forensic document examiner and forgery expert, and cases like this one are exactly why I do this work. This wasn’t just about forged paperwork or one bad man. It was about broken legal systems, underfunded agencies, shadow networks, and lives torn apart while the man walked free and drank champagne. If you think white-collar crime is nonviolent, tell that to the children who lost their father. Tell that to the family sleeping in a motel because their life savings vanished with one bad investment. Just one.
For every legitimate private lending opportunity, two more are built on fraud and bad faith. Don’t just protect your home. Protect your family. Protect your legacy.
Handwriting Experts Inc. — Dallas–Fort Worth
539 W. Commerce St #1396, Dallas, TX 75208-1953
Call or text: 214-614-8122
Have a questioned signature or document? Tell us what you have, and we’ll help you see what the evidence actually shows.
Frequently Asked Questions
How did the Toronto real estate fraud work?
Victims were steered into pulling nearly $1.4 million from their paid-off home into private mortgages promising first lien position — but the crook never filed the mortgage lien. Unregistered agreements left no security, no recourse, nothing.
How did the con man avoid conviction for twenty years?
He never put his name on any paper linking the crimes to him — hiding behind LLCs, shell companies, straw men, and aliases. Despite two decades of investigations and wrecked lives, he was never convicted in any country.
What is the warning sign of a private-lending Ponzi scheme?
An “opportunity” that sounds too good to be true — being told to “be the bank,” earn 10% returns, and let someone else do the work. One victim’s money was used to pay off another, Madoff-style, but with houses instead of stocks.
How can you protect yourself from real estate fraud?
Do your homework — a deep search on names and aliases can expose a scammer’s history. Verify that liens are actually registered, and never trust paperwork alone; for every legitimate private lending opportunity, more are built on fraud.
- Published in articles, Forensic Document Examination, News Stories
How Do You Fight a Forged Will in a Probate Court?
How Do You Fight a Forged Will in a Probate Court?
When someone passes away and leaves behind an estate worth fighting over, you’d be surprised how quickly a forged will can appear.
My company handles both forged and genuine documents—last wills and testaments among them. Usually, when someone dies and they had money, property, even a wedding ring, there’s a fight. And it’s often someone on the edges—a caretaker, a long-lost relative, a recent companion—who shows up holding a will that claims everything. That’s the moment a family member says, “Wait. I deserve a share of that estate.”
Why You Need an Attorney
If you’re in probate court, here’s the first thing to understand. Get a lawyer, even if you don’t think you can afford one. Without representation, you’re badly outgunned by anyone who has an attorney.
There are so many procedural maneuvers in a will contest that you may never get a chance to speak to the judge. That’s what people outside the legal field miss. You may have the perfect story. You may know exactly what happened. But you have to prove it—and you can’t, if you don’t know how. You can’t even get a qualified expert witness seated if you don’t ask the right questions or pass voir dire.
Most probate matters—a Dallas County estate dispute, say—are heard by a judge in a bench trial rather than a jury. That makes the quality of your representation and your experts even more important.
Judges do want to be fair. I’ve watched a judge sit with two pro se parties—both family members of the deceased, all of them fighting—and carefully ask questions and guide them, so the result wouldn’t get overturned on appeal. The reason is simple: neither one knew the law. But when one side knows the law and the other doesn’t, that’s an enormous advantage. So if the other side has a lawyer and you don’t, get one. And that attorney will tell you to hire someone like us—someone who does nothing but expert witness work for one specific piece of the puzzle.
How a Forensic Document Examiner Fits In
In these cases, we examine the will and determine whether it’s authentic, forged, or cut-and-pasted. Once that report is filed, the opposing side may try to have it excluded, or request an evidentiary hearing to contest the findings. If those terms are unfamiliar, that’s exactly why having an attorney matters.
I’ve even told people who truly can’t afford counsel to spend hours on ChatGPT, with a prompt like, “Act as a probate attorney in Texas. How would you handle this?” Let me be clear—ChatGPT is not a substitute for a licensed attorney. But if you genuinely can’t hire one, walking in with 90% of the right answers beats walking in with none.
I’ve had pro se clients use it to help draft motions, just to keep the case moving and get things excluded. Because if your opponent decides to bury you in paperwork, you may never get to tell your story—even if the will really was forged, even if it surfaced two years after the person died—simply because you couldn’t navigate the steps to reach a judge.
The Cost of Not Fighting Back
If you can afford a forensic handwriting expert or an expert witness, it will genuinely help your case going forward.
You could end up in probate court through no choice of your own—because someone you loved died and left a mess behind. You have my sympathies. We often land in legal situations we never wanted. But the cost of not handling them properly can run into hundreds of thousands of dollars. In some cases, half an estate—a million dollars. That’s wealth your side of the family could hold for generations, if you know how to fight for it.
Handwriting Experts Inc. — Dallas–Fort Worth
539 W. Commerce St #1396, Dallas, TX 75208-1953
Call or text: 214-614-8122
Have a questioned signature or document? Tell us what you have, and we’ll help you see what the evidence actually shows.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you fight a forged will in probate court?
Get a lawyer first — even if you don’t think you can afford one — then have a forensic document examiner determine whether the will is authentic, forged, or cut-and-pasted. Without representation you’re badly outgunned by anyone who has an attorney.
Why is representation so critical in a will contest?
There are so many procedural maneuvers that you may never get a chance to speak to the judge. You may know exactly what happened, but you have to prove it — and you can’t seat a qualified expert witness without asking the right questions and passing voir dire.
Are probate cases decided by juries?
Most probate matters are heard by a judge in a bench trial rather than a jury — which makes the quality of your representation and your experts even more important.
What’s at stake if you don’t fight back properly?
The cost of mishandling a probate fight can run into hundreds of thousands of dollars — in some cases half an estate, a million dollars. That’s wealth your side of the family could hold for generations if you know how to fight for it.
- Published in Forensic Document Examination