Articles

A private investigators (PI) job is quite involving and requires someone who is attentive to detail in order to connect crucial links during and after their fact-finding missions. Fictional characters like Sherlock Holmes, James Bond, Philip Marlowe and all the other exciting literary and fictional characters depict the work of a private investigator as exciting and full of thrill, but that is not the case in most instances. In real life, getting accurate facts that could be admissible in court proceedings or otherwise presenting facts that could be used by clients to make serious life altering decisions requires accuracy which is not only time consuming but if not well presented could destroy other people’s reputation or lives.

To be successful in the investigation industry, a PI who wants to be outstanding must possess fine-tuned skills in data collection, preservation of data and proper presentation of reports once the investigation assignment is complete. In other words, private investigators are essentially social scientists and the nature of their job revolves around understanding deviance in human behavior.

Present day PIs mainly rely on modern day surveillance technology to get their facts as only in few instances are they allowed to access private data regarding the subject being investigated. They are regular citizens and although normally licensed by the state, have no lawful ability to make arrests or prosecute like the FBI or CIA, but in some cases, they can be summoned to give evidence in a court of law as expert witnesses. Make sure your investigator is willing and able to present these facts in court when called upon.

Corporate and financial investigators.

They investigate members of the corporate world who have questionable integrity as well as doing background checks on employees on probation or shortlisted candidates before employment. Most of them have a background in corporate management, finance, and human resource management.

Legal detectives

These group of investigators focus on infidelity cases, criminal cases that the police can no longer pursue so they investigate on behalf of their clients for the sake of gathering evidence to settle court disputes. Most of them are ex policemen and have extensive knowledge in legal matters.

General detectives

They handle general investigation cases particularly those ones that are not complex in nature–just a general fact-finding for proper decision making. Most of clients who seek services from these detectives only require facts from a bird’s-eye-view and don’t require detailed facts as in most cases they don’t have any intentions to proceed with the matter to the justice system.

Training and Licensing

Unlike lawyers or doctors who must undergo a special training to qualify in their professions, private investigators need not to have a specific educational background as crime and deviance happens almost in everywhere. However, regulations differ depending on the state the PI is practicing.

Obtaining a license before practicing as a private investigator is mandatory in most places so it’s advisable to do a background check on your private investigator to ascertain his/her compliance. Remember hiring an unregistered PI will restrict his/her evidence from being admitted in the court of law and you could lose money to mediocre services.

Conclusion

Conducting investigations, no matter its nature requires full dedication to service and great analytical skills by the PI in charge. People sometimes break social norms and often it is the role of an investigator to document these instances. Whether you require documented evidence for a court case or just looking for the truth, make sure your investigator is professional, licensed and discreet.

No one person or locality can completely eradicate deviance and criminality within its jurisdiction, which makes private Investigators an essential part of any civilized society as we always want to know what is behind our backs without necessarily letting others know that we are looking. Information is powerful.