Forgery in the first degree · as in force on May 31, 2026
§ 170.15 Forgery in the first degree.
A person is guilty of forgery in the first degree when, with intent to defraud, deceive or injure another, he falsely makes, completes or alters a written instrument which is or purports to be, or which is calculated to become or to represent if completed:
1. Part of an issue of money, stamps, securities or other valuable instruments issued by a government or governmental instrumentality; or
2. Part of an issue of stock, bonds or other instruments representing interests in or claims against a corporate or other organization or its property.
Forgery in the first degree is a class C felony.
A person commits first-degree forgery by intending to defraud, deceive, or injure another and falsely making, completing, or altering a written instrument that is or could become:
It is a class C felony.
Marked in the text: penalties, time limits, sums of money. Editorial emphasis added by this edition; it does not appear in the statute as enacted.
This provision appears in Volume 4 — The Court Clerk: Penal Law; Volume 1 — The Court Officer in Plain English; Volume 3 — The Court Officer: Penal Law; Volume 3 — Your Career: Penal Law in Plain English.