IS HANDWRITING ANALYSIS LEGAL?

Handwriting, as viewed by the Federal Courts, is considered public domain. There are no civil laws precluding the use of handwriting samples and there have been no lawsuits involving graphologists. The following are some Supreme Court decisions concerning handwriting analysis in employment applications:

In United States v. Mara, 410 U.S. 19, 41 LW 4185 (1973), the Supreme Court held that the Fourth Amendment is not violated by a compelled production of "physical characteristics" that are constantly exposed to the public. The court stated: "Handwriting, like speech, is repeatedly shown to the public and there is no more expectation of privacy in the physical characteristics of a person's script than there is in the tone of his voice."

In United States v. Dionisio, 410 U.S. 1, 41 LW 4180 (1973), the Supreme Court held that the physical characteristics of a person's voice or handwriting, or facial characteristics, being constantly exposed to the public view, are not within the protection of the Fourth Amendment.

In Gilbert v. California, 388 U.S. 263 (1967), the Supreme Court held that the compelled production of handwriting exemplars, does not violate the Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination. Moreover, the Court stated: "A mere handwriting exemplar, in contrast to the content of what is written, like the words or body itself, is an identifying characteristic outside (Fifth Amendment) protection."

In United States v. Sydney W. Rosinsky, FR. P249 F2d No. 2, March 7, 1977, the Court held that "handwriting is behavior in public - no intrusion into privacy."

Our legal experts continue to extensively explore issues such as invasion of privacy, adverse and disparate impact, defamation of character, etc. The results indicated that handwriting analysis is a legal, ethical and non-discriminatory method of assessing personality and complies with all EEOC standards and regulations.

Additionally, extensive research conducted by labor law attorneys has determined that handwriting analysis is a legal, ethical, non-invasive, non-discriminatory and valid method of personality assessment. As a matter of prudent policy, however, the following procedure is recommended:

Employees and applicants should be made aware that human resource decisions will not be based solely on the handwriting analysis results. Provide a written statement that "the analysis results will be used in conjunction with other data, observations and hiring tools."

As viewed by the Federal Courts, handwriting is considered public domain and obtaining consent is not mandatory. However, obtaining written consent is recommended as the most prudent policy.