What Makes Counterfeiting Currency a Heinous Crime?

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What is counterfeiting currency? Getting rich the easy way: print your own money! Since the intrinsic value of money has declined over years, the replication of money has become more and more interesting for criminals. Learn how counterfeiters are caught and what penalties they face.

Counterfeiting currency is the intentional copying or imitation of money. The purpose is that the seemingly authentic currency can be used for trading, purchasing and exchanging goods, products, services and information. The false imitation may be in the form of fake coins or paper money. It is considered as a special form of forgery. Counterfeiting currency is a criminal offense; therefore, statutes have been established to combat it.

Defining Currency Counterfeiting

Counterfeiting generally is used in conjunction with the illegal use of intellectual property. It is a type of infringement that produces, duplicates and distributes false currency. Regardless of the area, type of currency and means of production, spurious designation that is identical with or substantially indistinguishable from a designation is considered a criminal offense.

It is an offense against the government and the citizens to counterfeit currency. The law strictly prohibits any individual or body to produce, duplicate or release currency that is unauthorized or not processed under legal terms. Only the institution specifically designated by the government has the right to distribute, exchange or remove from circulation authentic currency. Other than that, it is a serious crime to independently do the same.

Identifying Counterfeit Currency

Special markers are provided in order to detect illegal or fake currency. There are special laws and statutes that strictly enforce anti-counterfeiting acts to improve standards for the property of the government. The criminal offense is a form of theft, fraud and misrepresentation with relative penalties. Bills have widened the definition of trafficking so that counterfeit products will be immediately identified and acted upon.

Penalizing Currency Counterfeiters

One legal action is available for infringement of intellectual property. Preliminary injunction will be granted which means that the court prevents the offender from continuing to counterfeit and reproduce false goods until the end of the trial. Temporary restraining order or TRO is the term referring to a preliminary injunction of lesser time duration and without full knowledge of the offender. Remedies for the offense are declaratory relief, seizure, impoundment, and destruction of counterfeits. The government has the right to confiscate materials used for production at once.

Temporary restraining orders are granted by the court, together with the seeking and application for the temporary restraining order, the temporary restraining order, the summons and the complaint by the defendant. There should also be the “Order to Show Cause Why a Preliminary Injunction Should Not Be Issued” requiring a hearing and written report by the defendant.

Confidentiality is duly respected in counterfeiting lawsuits. The offender may prevent more evidence or records that show infringement by requesting documents to be filed with the court under seal. With this, the court cannot just readily disclose or view information during hearings which may aggravate or make the offense obvious than it seems.

Penalty for counterfeiting currency is a fine of not less than $250,000 up to $5,000,000. Offenders can be held in prison for five to twenty years. Depending on the severity or amount that was unofficially release into circulation, fines and jail time increase relatively. Repeated offenses will definitely have higher fines and imprisonment periods.