The case involved a husband and wife. Husband was not good at managing his affairs and as a result he owed a lot of money. Wife didn’t know and Husband wanted to keep it that way.
Husband decided to mortgage the family home to clear his debts. However, Wife had to sign the mortgage and other documentation. Husband still did not want Wife to know so Husband signed the mortgage and other documentation and forged Wife’s signature.
Husband needed someone to witness his and Wife’s signatures saying they saw both Husband and Wife sign the documentation and that they knew both Husband and Wife.
Husband told the local JP that Wife had terminal cancer and she was so ill she could not be visited. He convinced the JP to witness his signature and Wife’s signature on the mortgage and other documentation. Husband then used those documents to get the loan and pay off his debts.
The cat was out of the bag when Husband died before Wife and found her home had been mortgaged without her knowledge or consent.
The Judge held that:
• the JP, by attesting the mortgage, had falsely represented that Wife had signed the mortgage in his presence and that Wife was personally known to him;
• Witnesses have a duty of care. Such duty is not onerous as it merely requires the witness to be honest.
The moral of the story:
If you are ever asked to witness a signature on a document make sure you actually see the signatory sign the document and sight their ID. If you don’t then you could be assisting someone to commit a fraud and you may find yourself being sued.
A few minutes of honesty will save you trouble and expense later.
For those that need their signature witnessed – find the witness first. Sign the document while the witness is watching you. Don’t ask a witness to act dishonestly by saying they witnessed you sign the document when they didn’t.
