Prince William Fraud Lawyer

The Virginia Law Section §18.2-186 lays out criminal fraud as false statements to obtain credit or property.  As a Prince William fraud lawyer, I can fight your criminal fraud case in court.

read below important information related to fraud penalties and defenses:

Virginia Criminal Fraud Charges

Criminal fraud charges are brought under Virginia law section §18.2-186 are class 1 misdemeanors. 

Essentially, it defines fraud as the making of material statements that you know are false and intend for others to rely on those false statements. 

If you commit fraud under this section of Virginia law to get property worth less than $1,000, you have committed petit larceny as well.  Similarly, if the property is worth  $1,000 or more, you have committed grand larceny.

Additionally, several flavors of fraud exist as white-collar crimes in Virginia. 

These include healthcare or medical fraud, forging of documents, and more.  §18.2-172.

Makes it a class 5 felony to forge specific documents such as the signature of another. 

Class 5 felonies are punished by 1 to 5 years in jail and a fine of up to $2,500.  

Some “frauds” happen accidentally, and it is up to the commonwealth to show beyond a reasonable doubt that you knowingly forged or gave false information. 

This can be a high bar to meet and is why you need a skilled Prince William fraud lawyer for such charges.

Fraud in Virginia Civil Law

Fraud in the realm of civil law is a tort.  This means it is a civil violation of some specific interest you have. 

It is litigated by private individuals deemed plaintiffs, who bring the case, and the defendants, who are being sued.  Fraud mostly comes up in civil cases around contracts. 

In Virginia, a party alleging fraud has to prove 6 things.  The plaintiff must show:

(1) there was a false claim,

(2) of a present material fact,

(3) knowingly and intentionally made,

(4) intended to mislead,

(5) reasonable reliance by the misled party, and

(6) damage to the party misled.

Each of these 6 elements must be proven beyond a “preponderance of the evidence”. 

This is a much lower bar than beyond a reasonable doubt, and it basically just means that it is more likely than not each element happened. 

Additionally, some may not have a clear meaning some might expect. 

For example, a material fact is a fact that goes to the essence of the contract or deal.  It must be central and important enough to actually affect the contract. 

Additionally, the present means something definitively stated about the time it was stated. 

It is not a present statement to say something will happen in a month, or a week, or some other time that is not the actual present.

Defenses to Criminal Fraud in Virginia

If you are charged with criminal fraud, you have options. 

Firstly, you can get a skilled Prince William fraud lawyer from American Lawyers Group. 

The attorneys at American Lawyers Group can build you a solid defense and make it difficult for the prosecution to meet its burden of proving its case beyond a reasonable doubt. 

The uphill battle prosecutors face is proving that defendants acted knowingly. 

This is usually only possible through circumstantial evidence that can be attacked by a good fraud defense attorney.  

In the civil context, a defense attorney can defend you and challenge the arguments that plaintiffs use to show intent, materiality, reasonableness, and all the other elements of fraud. 

For example, reasonableness can be attacked by showing that the misled person was not objectively reasonable in relying on the statements you are alleged to have made.

Why You Need a Prince William Fraud Lawyer?

Fraud can be both criminal and civil issues for different cases and circumstances. 

These different circumstances will have different meanings, elements, and factors to weigh set forth by different statutes and court decisions. 

If you are facing a fraud case in Prince William County, you need an experienced Prince William fraud lawyer who can rebut the case of a plaintiff against you. 

If you think you have been lied to in a deal, you need a lawyer who can prove those elements and help get you the benefit of the deal or get you out of an unfair deal. 

If you are charged with fraud in Prince William, you need a fraud defense attorney who can make the best use of the facts and circumstances to help mitigate the penalties you face.

Get a Prince William fraud lawyer from American Lawyers Group today.