For law firms, the benefits of working with a legal investigator are extensive. From freeing up attorney time spent gathering evidence to distilling complex concepts into simple terms, a legal investigator is a wise investment in the success of your case.
Your case will be stronger and better supported with an objective fact gatherer on call for litigation support. Best of all, when you outsource the research, witness interviews, and analysis to a professional legal investigation firm like ours, you buy time to focus on the zealous advocacy for your clients that only a lawyer can do.
Hiring a skilled legal investigator is an investment, not an expense
A MORE PROFITABLE PRACTICE
Retaining a skilled legal investigator is an investment in the success of your case. Adding an experienced professional investigator to your legal team will help the lawyers at your law firm:
Secure bigger awards for clients
Nothing drives a rapid, high-dollar settlement quicker than carefully collected evidence that humanizes your legal arguments. Legal investigators aim to obtain anecdotes and quotes so good that opposing counsel wouldn’t risk putting our witness in front of a jury.
Earn accolades
To make the most compelling argument for the client, you need all the facts. Cases live or die based on the evidence. Don’t sell your client’s case short by arriving armed with too few facts when you could have connected all the dots. Happy clients lead to referrals and bolster your reputation as a fearless advocate.
More time to finesse arguments
Gathering evidence is time-consuming and takes you away from drafting your complaint and fine-tuning your legal arguments. You don’t need to collect the evidence yourself, though. A capable legal investigator will be able to do so more efficiently than anyone in your office. How do I know? It’s what we do every day. We’ve clocked well over 10,000 hours finding and interviewing witnesses to support sophisticated legal arguments.
We go to locations, talk to people, and drill into data to identify leads and connections.
Identify hidden assets for garnishment
Securing a favorable verdict is only half the battle when a case involved substantial losses to your client. Left to figure out how to collect, clients can grow frustrated with counsel. An asset search performed by an experienced private investigator locates financial accounts — including bank accounts, safety deposit boxes, and even investments — and other assets. We must have proof of permissible purpose via a judgment or writ before we perform these searches.
Evaluate opportunities with more precision
What you don’t know about a potential partner, new case, or acquisition target can hurt your practice down the road. To avoid problematic entanglements and future headaches, many firms rely on a legal investigator to conduct reputational due diligence on associates and companies. These deep-dive background checks take advantage of consumer data, court records, social media, and our proprietary custom databases.
STRONGER CASES
Legal investigators are expert fact finders who know how to obtain information discreetly, legally, and ethically. With an investigator on your team, you’ll have more of the story and ample evidence to prove your case. Law firms rely on legal investigators to:
Conduct sophisticated background research
Even the largest law firms don’t subscribe to the breadth of commercial data sources that a legal investigative firm does. From LexisNexis to the credit bureaus, we can access the data and know what is permissible to obtain and how to get it. In addition, our in-house data repository contains coveted search tools no longer available online.
Assemble the pieces
Legal investigators don’t just gather evidence, either—a seasoned legal investigator figures out how it all fits together. Legal investigators obtain proof by identifying and requesting documents, ferreting out facts buried deep in datasets, and interviewing witnesses and experts. As the evidence comes together, the savvy litigation investigator excels at identifying complex connections between people, events, and documents.
Tactical and strategic insights
Legal investigators develop a deep understanding of each case. As litigation progresses, the litigation investigator serves as a resource for the attorneys on the legal team during conferences, hearings, and depositions.
Legal investigators offer objective assessments of the credibility of individuals and provide input on tactics and strategy.
Obtain documents
As investigators, we’re experts at finding and obtaining information. Legal investigators possess a sophisticated understanding of freedom of information laws. At Integra Intelligence, we know what is out there and how to get our hands on it. We run the numbers and offer reliable predictions of the turnaround time. We’ve been filing requests for years and know what is working at the federal agencies.
Ensure evidence is admissible
An experienced legal investigator operates with integrity while collecting evidence. He is well-versed in the dos and don’ts of evidence collection for use in court. Legal investigators are transparent with witnesses and never misrepresent themselves.
IMPROVE WITNESS RELATIONS
Though often overlooked, witness relations are a critical factor in successful courtroom strategy. A legal investigator is accustomed to building rapport with witnesses and keeping them in the loop as a case plays out. A professional litigation investigator will:
Identify, locate, and establish rapport with witnesses
As litigation plays out over months or years, it’s easy to lose track of witnesses. A key witness may change his number or move to another state. A legal investigator can track down people efficiently and discreetly. In all but the rarest cases, a litigation investigator will be able to locate and provide contact details for individuals connected to your lawsuit. Many legal investigation firms handle service of process for clients, as well.
Obtain vivid details during witness interviews
People are the make or break element in every legal case. Arguments rely on details provided by witnesses. Of course, you don’t need to be a licensed investigator to conduct interviews with witnesses. Some firms rely on office staff or even litigators to conduct these interviews.
All interviews aren’t created equal, though. Interviewing is an art that an experienced legal investigator has spent thousands of hours mastering. The best legal investigators quickly put witnesses at ease and establish common ground. By establishing rapport early on, the investigator ensures the witness will stay onboard over months or years of litigation.
STRENGTHEN THE LITIGATION TEAM
Legal investigators are a necessity for the well-rounded litigation support team. that goes beyond evidence collection. A skilled professional litigation investigator will add to your firm’s brain trust with:
Broad knowledge-base with specific subject matter expertise
Most private investigators are fueled by curiosity in all they do. With an insatiable urge to learn about new subjects and master new skills, investigators bring a breadth of knowledge that frequently helps forge valuable connections or understand a niche aspect of a case.
Objective analysis
Legal investigators are skilled observers who are frequently called upon to assess character and credibility and articulate those observations in plain language, not jargon.
Insights from past casework
Legal investigators hone their expertise through casework. An investigator who has been working on a particular type of case for years has real-world experience that is more valuable than any certificate. There’s no substitute for the opportunity to devote hundreds of hours to mastering a case type or learning about an industry.
For instance, at Integra Intelligence, we work on several dozen complex litigation cases each year. That work ensures we’re attuned to trends in securities, antitrust, and qui tam litigation, making us an excellent choice for an attorney working on a securities class action or False Claims Act case. On the other hand, if your case involves child custody or marital issues, there are other agencies with far more appropriate experience.
Connections to specialists
Legal investigators take pride in being able to find a solution for firms via our vast professional network. We have carefully vetted colleagues with just about every specialty that arises in litigation support.
Elegant explanations of complex concepts
Not everyone in the courtroom is a lawyer, and too much legalese or jargon can set an ominous tone with the jury. An accomplished legal investigator will distill complex concepts and technical mumbo jumbo into plain language, making it accessible to everyone in court. At Integra Intelligence, we focus on clear, concise communication.
MAKE WISER DECISIONS
With a legal investigator on hand, you will be able to rest assured you have all the information you need to decide your next move. A legal investigator brings a fresh perspective to your case and helps a busy law firm:
Assess witness character and credibility
Legal investigators are keen observers who are frequently called upon to assess character and credibility and articulate those observations.
We see the trees and the forest. A skilled legal investigator is aware of his biases and able to set them aside when judging evidence.
Calibrate courtroom strategy
As an independent party, private investigators can testify as witnesses if needed. When asked to articulate their evidence-gathering process, a legal investigator is prepared to describe how evidence was acquired and handled.
A skilled legal investigator possesses a poker player’s eye for deception. We note the “tells” a witness or jury candidate displays when they appear to be lying, think through the possible implications, and work to mitigate any threats.
Predict the future
Want to be confident you’re making the wisest move in any given situation? Legal investigators can’t show you the future, exactly. But, you’ll be surprised how accurate our predictions often prove.