What happens if you lie on a legal document

Historically, perjury was defined as lying while testifying in court. The law now defines the crime to cover not just trials but also many other proceedings, including grand juries, family law court , bail hearings, Congressional committee hearings, and depositions in civil lawsuits. Sworn statements made to governmental agencies such as the Social Security Administration or in financial affidavits such as loan applications are also covered.

It's also a criminal offense to cause another to commit perjury, called suborning perjury. A witness under oath commits perjury by making a statement in a court or other proceeding that the witness knows is not true. The statement must be "material" to the subject of the proceeding, meaning that it must have some relationship to the lawsuit, investigation, or inquiry of the proceeding.

All parts of this definition are important, so let's take a closer look at each:. Remember, perjury is giving false testimony—saying or writing something that is not true. This means that true statements, even when made to intentionally mislead, are not perjury. For example, where a defendant in a mail fraud case testifies that he did not "send" the fraudulent document because he did not actually put the document in the mailbox himself, he has told the literal truth and has not committed perjury.

In such a situation, the prosecutor has to ask further questions such as, "did you direct someone to drop the document in the mailbox? Sometimes, witnesses say or write something that they later recant.

Whether their change of heart constitutes a legally recognized defense to a perjury charge depends on the law of the state where charges would be brought. If the case were to be brought in federal court, one of two results is possible, courtesy of the two federal laws that concern perjury:.

In some cases, the prosecutor will call a defendant solely because the prosecutor knows that he will likely lie under oath, committing perjury, and the prosecutor doesn't need his testimony for any other purpose. In these cases, a defendant will claim that this has happened and the prosecutor will deny it.

Whether or not a prosecutor has actually set this "perjury trap," this is a hard defense to raise, for two reasons:. Some defenses that you might think will apply will not be available in a perjury prosecution in certain situations.

They include:. A person convicted of perjury under federal law may face up to five years in prison and fines. The punishment for perjury under state law varies from state to state, but perjury is a felony and carries a possible prison sentence of at least one year, plus fines and probation. Penalties are increased in relation to how much the perjury interfered with the proceeding. When the perjurer was a witness in his own criminal trial, his sentence for the underlying conviction may also be increased, on the grounds that a lying defendant is one who has a bad character and is not likely to be rehabilitated quickly.

Judges can punish a perjurer who lied under oath to hide or assist a crime in a way that goes beyond the sentence for perjury. That defendant may also be charged as an accessory to the crime he was attempting to hide or assist, if that charge will carry a greater sentence. And a perjurer may even be charged as an accessory to a crime of which he is convicted, if he lied to conceal that crime. One of the main responsibilities of an attorney in a hearing or a trial is to prevent false testimony or evidence from being presented.

This duty is balanced with the duty intended to keep all communications between the two of you private and confidential. This is not a huge ordeal in most circumstances, and an attorney can balance these twin responsibilities. If you were to decide to tell a lie in court, then your attorney would need to decide whether or not to come forward with information to ensure that your false testimony does not go into the record.

Your attorney would be able to reveal information that they believe is necessary to prevent or fix a problem created by your false or misleading testimony in court. Even before going to these lengths, your attorney would speak with you privately if they knew your intent to present misleading or untrue testimony in court.

If your attorney has strong reason to believe that you will present false testimony, then the lawyer must make that known to the judge in advance. Your lawyer has a duty to the court that is as important as their duty to you as far as representation is concerned. Keep in mind that attorneys understand that they will go before that judge long after your divorce or child custody case has come to an end.

The lawyer will also understand that it is far more likely that they will be held accountable for allowing you to present false testimony than you are criminally prosecuted for doing so.

This should offer your attorney even more cause to prevent you from presenting false testimony. If you present false testimony, it is up to your attorney to make the court aware of that.

In reality, the chances of your case going before a judge for a contested hearing or trial are pretty slim. Family law attorneys find themselves in court for hearings and other proceedings but rarely are they there for a trial.

It is much more likely that your family law case will settle in mediation than go all the way to court. If this is the case, then your opportunity to present testimony to a judge will be limited. Therefore, we should not put the cart before the horse in terms of assuming that you will be in court in that your testimony under oath will be taken.

However, we need to discuss this topic because if you find yourself in court, then all sorts of results can occur. Family law cases are incredibly emotional and can be quite contentious. The odds are that if you make your way to a family court, then numerous attempts to settle and otherwise negotiate your way through your case have failed.

This level of frustration you may have with your circumstances, and your opposing party could lead you to go to any means necessary to win your case. You may not be a dishonest person, but you may be willing to make an exception under this one circumstance.

Given the high stakes of a family law case, I cannot recommend enough how it is important to listen to your attorney's counsel and only provide honest testimony in court. I'm not even trying to make an ethical play to your better judgment, but rather, I am making a practical pitch to your willingness to participate in a process that awards honesty over falsehoods.

So much of a family law case is circumstantial and based on the events of your life. In many ways, the family court judge is trying to apply their judgment 2 what took place in your life discussed in a hearing or trial.

If a judge cannot feel comfortable believing you in your rendition of certain events, then it is likely that they will be unlikely to believe you or find you credible in other regards as well. This is a huge detriment to your case and can impact the final judgment that the court ultimately makes.

You may be surprised at how showing respect, telling the truth, and doing basic things like this while in front of the judge can sway a judge to make rulings in your favor. If you are uncomfortable with the idea of testifying in front of a judge, please work with your attorney on building confidence and developing a strategy on how to approach this important topic.

Similarly, you can be sued over a hoax or prank if it causes damage to a third party. It's easy to get help, just tell us your story and we'll help you understand all your options. Fill out this form and one of our local law professionals will be in contact.

By submitting this form you agree to the terms of our Privacy policy. Subscribe Now. This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. Punishment for committing perjury could result in probation, fines, or a prison sentence up to 5 years. If your spouse's deceit doesn't warrant a criminal investigation, the judge in your divorce case could still find your spouse in contempt of court, which could result in fines or time in jail.

Although this may be your first experience with civil court, most judges have seen it all. So, if you suspect that your spouse is hiding assets, making false accusations, or misrepresenting your marital history, chances are that the judge will be able to pick up on the deception. For example, some spouses will trade a higher paying job for minimum wage employment to avoid paying more child or spousal support.

Although job-switching spouses try to outsmart the court by saying they were "laid off" or "didn't have control over the job change," most judges are perceptive enough to see the coincidence between a new position and a divorce filing.

As a result, the judge will create the support award using your spouse's previous income, rather than the new, lower income. If you suspect your spouse is hiding or misrepresenting assets, hiring an attorney may be the best way to ensure that you get your share of the marital estate.

Attorneys have a variety of tools to locate hidden or missing assets, like the right to subpoena records, participation in depositions, and requests for production of documents from your spouse. It's also important to understand that as a party to the divorce, your credibility could make or break your case. If the court discovers or believes that you are dishonest in your testimony or court-related documents, the judge's impression of you may be enough to influence the result.

After all, if you lie about how much money you have in a separate bank account, what else isn't true? If you learn about your spouse's deception after the judge finalizes your divorce, you might be able to reopen your settlement agreement, but it's going to be an uphill battle.

If you can provide the court with concrete, actual evidence of the intentional misrepresentation, the judge may allow you to change your agreement.