fraud

Home > ... > Social Sciences and the Law > Law > Crime and Law Enforcement > ...

fraud

The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition | 2008 | The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. Copyright 2008 Columbia University Press. (Hide copyright information) Copyright

fraud in law, willful misrepresentation intended to deprive another of some right. The offense, generally only a tort , may also constitute the crime of false pretenses. Frauds are either actual or constructive. An actual fraud requires that the act be motivated by the desire to deceive another to his harm, while a constructive fraud is a presumption of overreaching conduct that arises when a profit is made from a relation of trust (see fiduciary ). The courts have found it undesirable to make a rigid definition of the type of misrepresentation that amounts to actual fraud and have preferred to consider individually the factors in each case. The misrepresentation may be a positive lie, a failure to disclose information, or even a statement made in reckless disregard of possible inaccuracy. Actual fraud can never be the result of accident or negligence , because of the requirement that the act be intended to deceive. The question of commission may depend upon the competence and commercial knowledge of the alleged victim. Thus dealings with a minor, a lunatic, a feeble-minded person, a drunkard, or (in former times) a married woman are scrutinized more closely than dealings with an experienced businessman. A lawsuit based upon actual or constructive fraud must specify the fraudulent act, the plaintiff's reliance on it, and the loss suffered. The remedy granted to the plaintiff in most cases is either compensatory (and possibly punitive) damages for the injury or cancellation of the contract or other agreement and the restoration of the parties to their former status. In a few states of the United States both damages and cancellation are available. In certain suits based upon a contract, fraud may be introduced as a defense.

Hide all research tools
Print this article Print all entries for this topic Cite this article Link to this article
Link to this article

CloseClose

Create a link to this page

Copy and paste this link tag into your Web page or blog:

<a href="http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/.aspx#1E1-fraud" title="Facts and information about fraud">fraud</a>

Add this article to Del.icio.usBookmark this article on DiigoShare this article on FacebookSubmit this article to RedditGive this article a thumbs-up on StumbleUpon
Show all research tools

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

  • MLA
  • Chicago
  • APA

"fraud." The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 28 Nov. 2009 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"fraud." The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. (November 28, 2009). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-fraud.html

"fraud." The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. Retrieved November 28, 2009 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-fraud.html

Learn more about citation styles

fraud

The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology | 1996 | | © The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology 1996, originally published by Oxford University Press 1996. (Hide copyright information) Copyright

fraud XIV. — (O)F. fraude — L. fraus, fraud-.
So fraudulent XV. — OF. or L.

Hide all research tools
Print this article Print all entries for this topic Cite this article Link to this article
Link to this article

CloseClose

Create a link to this page

Copy and paste this link tag into your Web page or blog:

<a href="http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/.aspx#1O27-fraud" title="Facts and information about fraud">fraud</a>

Add this article to Del.icio.usBookmark this article on DiigoShare this article on FacebookSubmit this article to RedditGive this article a thumbs-up on StumbleUpon
Show all research tools

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

  • MLA
  • Chicago
  • APA

T. F. HOAD. "fraud." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 28 Nov. 2009 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

T. F. HOAD. "fraud." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (November 28, 2009). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-fraud.html

T. F. HOAD. "fraud." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved November 28, 2009 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-fraud.html

Learn more about citation styles

Facts and information from other sites

Related articles from newspapers, magazines, and more

Fraud-i Ltd launches first combined fraud awareness andtraining solution; Web-based training tools to enable 'fraud responsible' business - increases fraud awareness of staff and third party contractors.
M2 Presswire; 6/23/2005; 700+ words ; ...intranet. As part of this, the Fraud Awareness Training Pack includes...of what constitutes corporate fraud, by 'red flagging' a range...straightforward theft to management frauds such as price fixing, taking...unethical or fraudulent activity. "Fraud-i therefore provides a unique...
Frauds Gone Wild: Barry Minkow Creates DVD Series to Help People Avoid Fraud.
PR Newswire; 2/27/2007; 700+ words ; ...Barry Minkow and his Fraud Discovery Institute will...DVD series entitled "Frauds Gone Wild!" to help...and funded by an actual fraud victim who lost $500,000 in a scam, "Frauds Gone Wild!" explores the most common kinds of fraud. They include specific...
Management fraud trends
Magazine article from: The Secured Lender; 11/1/1997; ; 700+ words ; ...author has witnessed close to 400 frauds. A superior at one New York...commented that "we experience a fraud every five years or so." At...rate, I should have seen four frauds by now. In order to gain a...forces of the growing extent of fraud, the report looks at the perpetrators...
Fraud knows no boundaries.
Magazine article from: Business Credit; 11/1/1997; ; 700+ words ; ...reduce the total incidence of fraud." "At present, adequate...network is lost to cloned phones. Fraud experts expect Internet-based frauds to mushroom as well. "The...fast becoming a major route for fraud," notes Dr. Koletar. Roger...
Amdocs Fraud Management goes live at Deutsche Telekom; Amdocs continues successful fraud implementations, providing many of the world's leading communications companies with advanced capabilities to identify, track and reduce fraud.
M2 Presswire; 7/9/2002; 700+ words ; ...PRESSWIRE-9 July 2002-Amdocs: Amdocs Fraud Management goes live at Deutsche Telekom; Amdocs continues successful fraud implementations, providing many of the...capabilities to identify, track and reduce fraud (C)1994-2002 M2 COMMUNICATIONS LTD...
Fraud Watch (September 2007).
News Wire article from: Mondaq Business Briefing; 10/30/2007; 700+ words ; ...been happening in the world of fraud in the last month. We make...detection and investigation of fraud. UNITED KINGDOM Assets Recovery...number of suspected mortgage frauds after lenders reported an...compensates victims of financial fraud and mis-selling. Financial...
Frauds, scams & other crimes
Magazine article from: America's Community Banker; 7/1/1996; ; 700+ words ; ...success in perpetrating frauds, scams and other crimes...Simply said, financial fraud is a growth industry that...Internet-more traditional frauds and scams are of greater...the experts say. Check fraud, ATM fraud and credit card...
INSURANCE FRAUD PROSECUTOR POSTS 2005 REPORT AND REFERENCE MANUAL ON WEB
News Wire article from: US Fed News Service, Including US State News; 3/1/2006; 700+ words ; ...forwarded the 2005 Office of Insurance Fraud Prosecutor report and reference manual chronicling New Jersey's insurance fraud efforts to Gov. Corzine and the New...electronically via the Office of Insurance Fraud Prosecutor Web Page, highlights investigations...
Fraud 'hitting firms hard in Northern Ireland'.(Business)
Newspaper article from: The News Letter (Belfast, Northern Ireland); 5/21/2002; 700+ words ; ...ADRIENNE McGILL BUSINESS fraud is on the increase and it...half of their losses from fraud, reflecting the higher incidence of internal frauds where the value of damages...business, the bigger the fraud. Of 21 Northern Ireland organisations...
Fraud Brings Detection at POS.
Magazine article from: National Mortgage News; 7/25/2005; ; 700+ words ; The days of fraud detection being a quality control and post...are more aware of the different types of fraud detection tools and the value of using...that they have to use technology to offset fraud and other issues. "As the industry becomes...
Click to see an enlarged picture
fraud. (Image by ShutterStock)

For students and teachers!

Encyclopedia.com provides students and teachers facts, information, and biographies from verified, citable sources, including:

Encyclopedia.com provides students and teachers facts, information, and biographies from verified, citable sources, including:

Current fraud News:

Climate Emails Don't Prove Warming Is a Fraud

(11/27/2009 3:55:05 PM)

Hoffman Concedes, Again

(11/24/2009 10:44:05 PM)

Gold Mine Scamster Rips Off Couple for $5M

(11/24/2009 7:47:02 AM)

Manager: I Warned Nic Not to Buy That Castle...

(11/19/2009 3:33:04 PM)

FBI Arrests Two More Madoff Aides

(11/13/2009 3:17:05 PM)