A lawyer’s field of work is mainly with courts, providing legal expertise and finding legal loopholes or workarounds that benefit their clients. Surprisingly, attorneys also have an investigative role to play to win their cases. This is where the role of a lawyer starts to overlap with that of a private detective.
Most lawyers are able to handle basic detective work however, in cases dealing with divorce,or corporations, more in-depth investigations, like background checks, become necessary. These cases may include the need for expert computer skills for investigative work online.
This article goes on to describe the importance of hiring a private investigator in Knoxville,TN for lawyers.
Common Law Issues that Require a Private Investigator
Attorneys have several cases that require a lot of investigative work. Private investigators are experts at what they do and it is very beneficial to an attorney to hire one. They can help make the case stronger, reconstruct history, and even provide evidence to support a claim and bring facts to light. A private investigator can handle such investigative work with ease hence why lawyers usually trust them with their investigative needs.
Here are a few common causes and issues that often require the help of a detective.
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Tracking Down People
A lawyer may not have the resources necessary to track someone down nor do they have the time. Lawyers have their hands full with the issues pertaining to the case. On the other hand, tracking someone down is a piece of cake for any detective no matter who it is, be it a person of interest or a
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Analysis & Prediction of Their Next Move
Lawyers tend to give every case all they have and are usually very aggressive in dealing with opponents. A private investigator has the resources to analyze a situation and even predict the opponent’s next move to help lawyers get the upper hand in any case.
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Investigate Hidden Assets
The work of a lawyer extends to the digital world as well. Some of the more common issues are those concerning trademarks and other intellectual property. A detective has the skills and resources to track and monitor the digital world — which is not something every lawyer may be able to achieve.
How a Private Investigator can Help
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Find New Evidence
A private detective will have a different perspective of a case as compared to an attorney. This different perspective makes it is possible for private detectives to bring new evidence to light. They may not know the legal issues pertaining to the case and at times, it may also be irrelevant to them. However, they concentrate their efforts on the hard detective work and help by bringing new issues to the table, like finding inconsistencies in the police investigation, obtaining witness statements and medical records, if necessary, and any evidence that has been buried.
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Unearthing Hidden Evidence
A detective can find hidden assets, especially in divorce cases. Lawyers often employ the help of detectives to detect unreported income. Detectives have the resources and skills to dedicate to these tasks along making use of innovative techniques like surveillance, stakeouts, etc.
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Forensics and Electronic Equipment Analysis
This is the digital age where a large number of people use their smartphones and computers hence the investigative requirements extend to such devices as well. There are several special techniques involved like checking browser history, photos, emails, calls logs, online chats, financial transactions, etc. A PI will have the necessary skills and knowledge to obtain such information from a mobile device or computer.
The Job of a Private Detective
You might not know that one-fourth of all private detectives are self-employed, meaning they get to choose their clients, While the remaining private detectives work for private industries that are employed by security firms, identity protection services, law firms, financial institutions, and retail businesses.
Although, there are some other tasks as well that a private detective may need to do such as submit documentation, report writing, computer research, investigations, surveillance, and various operations including:
- Managing interviews and obtaining statements of the witnesses to gather information.
- Verifying applications of the employees and provide data for background checks.
- Collecting evidence to assist as criminal defense for an innocent person.
- Investigating cases related to consumer fraud, fraudulent cashier’s checks, and online dating profiles.
- Work online to investigate computer crimes and identity theft.
- Conduct research through public records and court records.
- Conduct surveillance operations and criminal background checks.
- Locate lost people and hidden assets.
- Gather information that can be presented in court.
- Child custody/child support
- Infidelity
- A private detective will also help in undercover investigations and workplace investigations.
Benefits of Becoming a Private Detective
There are many reasons to become a private detective including multiple benefits as well. However, if you are thinking that the life of a private detective would be pretty exciting as an action-packed movie then you are wrong. In reality, a private detective should have patience during the long hours of sitting and waiting and should also have the ability to adapt quickly when circumstances change.
One of the biggest advantages of working as a private investigator or detective is the ability to work independently. As mentioned above, most professionals work for themselves so they can take as many or as few clients as they want. This would provide you with the ability to be your own boss and to choose how, where, when, and for whom you work. While the career of a private detective requires you to utilize common sense, think quickly, and have the ability to solve problems.
Thus, a private investigator is a necessity for any legal firm for their investigative needs. They have the skills to expand the investigative boundaries of lawyers, as already mentioned in the article by helping search for a public of social media profile of a person of interest. Finding information about a person using a digital medium is not a task for those without the proper skills and techniques. Cheap private investigators also use sophisticated equipment dedicated for their investigative work and finding the information that may be hard to uncover. They are also experts at producing video evidence of fraud and cheating, making them a necessary asset for any case.
