DEFINITION OF FRAUD
Many sided means by which human ingenuity
can devise; and which are resorted to by one individual, to take
advantage over another by false suggestions or suppression of
the truth. This includes all surprises, tricks, cunning or
dissembling, and any unfair way which another is cheated.
Source: Black’s Law Dictionary, 5th ed., by Henry Campbell
Black, West Publishing Co., St. Paul, Minnesota, 1979.
WHAT CONSTITUTES FRAUD
Under common law, 3 elements are required to prove fraud: a
material false statement made with intent to deceive (scienter),
a victim’s reliance on the statement and damages.