During the collection process of signature specimens to submit with the questioned signature(s), maximize the comparison process by the following:
Collect ‘like’ documents.
For example, if a signature was written on a legal document it is preferable to submit signature samples from other legal documents rather than from greeting cards, credit card receipts, etc. Similarly, if a questioned signature is on a check, the best comparison samples would be other checks known to be signed by the account holder.
Known signature exemplars should be provided to the forensic document examiner dated as close as possible to the document in question. Comparing a signature on a Will dated in 1995 with a document signed several years before or after, would serve little purpose.
An ample quantity, and quality images, of the known signatures submitted provide a better foundation for the examiner to establish the writer’s ‘range of variation’, resulting in a credible, objective opinion.