Authorities: Woman pretended to be a lawyer for 10 years, was in line to be named partner

Authorities say a Pennsylvania woman used forged documents to pretend to be a lawyer for a decade and was in line to be named partner when her fraud was discovered.

Forty-five-year-old Kimberly Kitchen, of James Creek, was charged Thursday with forgery and unauthorized practice of law.

The attorney general says Kitchen fooled BMZ Law by forging a law license, bar exam results, an email showing she attended Duquesne University law school and a check for a state attorney registration fee.

The attorney general says she handled estate planning for more than 30 clients.

Kitchen's attorney says, "There are things about the charges we don't agree with so we're going to be fighting some of the charges." She wasn't specific.

The firm didn't immediately return a call Friday.