12 Legal Issues in Handwriting Analysis

LEGAL ISSUES IN
HANDWRITING ANALYSIS
Personnel Screening
The EEOC and Graphology
• Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, prohibits the
use of selection criteria that disproportionately exclude members of
a protected class where the selection criterion is not job-related and
consistent with business necessity. The EEOC's "Uniform
Guidelines on Employee Selection Procedures" (29 C.F.R., 16070)
require that every selection procedure having an adverse impact on
a protected group be validated. A validated selection procedure must
be job-related for the position in question and a valid predictor of
successful job performance.
• There is no evidence or cases which suggest that graphology has
an adverse impact on a protected class. The process of analyzing a
person's handwriting for job-related characteristics usually does not
involve a face-to-face meeting with the applicant; moreover, the
analyst is typically unaware of the age, sex, race and/or religion of
the applicant. Consequently, Title VII would not apply and the EEOC
would not have jurisdiction.
Suggested Guidelines for
Personnel Screening
• When using handwriting analysis in the personnel screening
process, the following guidelines would be helpful in assuring fair
and reasonable application:
1. Never use handwriting analysis as the sole criterion for making a
decision.
2. Notify applicants that their handwriting will be analyzed and that they will
be able to read and critique the report.
3. Use a trained and certified handwriting analyst.
4. Handwriting samples and reports should be obtained uniformly from all
applicants in a particular job area.
• The information obtained should be utilized in future interviews as a
basis for asking specific questions about personality traits which
may impact the person's ability to discharge the requisite duties,
consistent with a job description and/or specification. Questions can
also be fashioned from the reports and used in reference-checking
relative to the applicant's experience and abilities for accomplishing
prior job tasks.
Instructions For Obtaining A Handwriting
Sample For Personnel Screening
Prospective applicants might be given
instructions consistent with the following:
1. Use 8 1/2" x 11" unlined paper, such as copy
paper.
2. Use the writing instrument of your choice,
except pencil.
3. Do not copy the text, nor write lyrics or
poetry. Spontaneous thought is best.
4. An ideal sample is at least one page long.
Instructions For Obtaining A Handwriting
Sample For Personnel Screening
Answer at least three of the following questions in your natural
handwriting on a separate sheet of paper and sign your name (if you
normally print, please also include a paragraph in cursive writing,
even if you never write that way; if you learned to write outside the
United States, please also include a paragraph in your native
language) :
Questions:
A. What, to you, are the characteristics of a successful business?
B. What do you consider to be your greatest achievement?
C. What does excellent customer service mean to you?
D. What does teamwork mean to you?
E. What quality do you like most in a person?
F. What trait do you dislike most in others?
G. What do you consider to be your top three strengths?
Counseling and Personal
Analysis
• Consumer protection laws and ethical guidelines of professional
practice in most areas of the United States require that persons
providing counseling services to the public must operate within the
limitations of their licensure, certification, training and experience;
consequently, handwriting reports used for psychotherapeutic
purposes must be employed under the auspices of a trained and
licensed counselor in many states. Some handwriting analysts are
also psychologists and counselors, while others are trained to
practice Grapho-Therapy.
• Handwriting reports used for personal analysis are usually
requested by a person interested in self-knowledge. The analyst will
give them a written or verbal report, depending upon client needs,
analyst preferences and other conditions.
Graphology and the Courts
• There are many cited court cases which involve the concept that
handwriting is a public manifestation of self (similar to clothing and
speech), and as such, is considered to fall within the public domain.
There are other cited court cases which deal with the analysis of the
personality from a handwriting exemplar in reference to the mental
and emotional states of the writer. The following are only some of
the cases available for reference:
• (1970-1979), Boulder Colorado Juvenile Court Center, Boulder, CO.

Graphologist: Mary DeLapp. Judge: Horace Holmes. Graphologist
provided evaluations for juveniles for the purpose of determining
placement penalties and treatment to the court and the probation
department.
Graphology and the Courts
• August 1990), Supreme Court, Appellate Division, First Department New York State.
The PEOPLE of the State of New York, Respondent, v. Domingo CORREAL a/k/a
Correal Domingo, Defendant-Appellant. Winston McIntosh, Brooklyn, of counsel
(Philip L. Weinstein, New York City, attorney) for defendant-appellant. Judges: J.P.
Kupferman, Sullivan, Carro, Ellerin, and Smith, J.J. Gabriel Cotorreal, the defendant's
13-year-old brother, testified that the defendant was left-handed and used his left
hand to write, eat, and throw. Felix Klein, a graphologist, also testified on behalf of the
defendant, stating that based upon tests administered to the defendant, he
determined that the defendant would use his left hand to fire a gun. This testimony
went largely unrefuted, although a police officer and marksmanship instructor, Joseph
Alemeda, testified that some people shoot with their right hand despite being left
handed in other respects.
• (1991a), Vista Municipal Court, Vista, CA, Traffic Court. Client-Defendant Scott E.
Hawkins, Client Attorney: William Bradford Saunders, Law Offices of the Public
Defender of San Diego County, Vista, CA 92083. Judge: Susanne Knauf.
Graphologist: Paula Sassi. Graphologist testified that there were no indications of
alcohol evident in the writing or the signature taken as a sample by the arresting
officer the night of the traffic stop. A study, referenced in Huntington Hartford's book,
You Are What You Write, was used in the testimony. The defendant was acquitted.

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What guidelines are suggested for using handwriting analysis in personnel screening?

What limitations exist on using handwriting analysis for counseling or personal analysis purposes?

LEGAL ISSUES IN

• (1970-1979), Boulder Colorado Juvenile Court Center, Boulder, CO.

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