Legal Definitions - false pretenses

False pretenses, also known as larceny by false pretenses, is a type of crime. It happens when someone lies to get something from another person. The person who lies wants to cheat the other person out of their property.

For example, if someone tells you they are a famous artist and asks you to give them your valuable painting to use in an exhibit, but they are not really an artist, that is false pretenses. They lied to you to get your painting.

False pretenses is different from larceny by trick because in false pretenses, the person who lied gets ownership of the property, not just possession of it.

Many states have laws that make false pretenses a crime. For instance, in North Carolina, it is illegal to get property by lying about something that happened in the past or something that will happen in the future.

Overall, false pretenses is a crime that involves lying to get something valuable from someone else.