We were asked recently about the ethics and legality of Dark Web searches, increasingly part of many investigations. I realized we had never posted on this issue and it’s about time.
Since a lot of what we use from the Dark Web is stolen information, can we make use of it?
In short, the answer
Some people just like privacy, but others form companies with a view to concealing any link between that company and themselves. If you are hiding assets from creditors, that’s a plus (for you, not the creditors).
Picking a company name can be more difficult than many think. A lot of the obvious company names are
The big guys have been going bankrupt, but the real carnage is yet to come:. Among America’s small businesses. Potential creditors need to get organized for the fight which appears to have been kicked off in New York this month with a fascinating case.
We have seen the big names going down including JC Penney,
A story in today’s Wall Street Journal about “Why the Virtual Reality Hype is About to Come Crashing Down” makes the simple point that computers haven’t caught up to all the permutations of real life to make a “virtual reality” headset experience resemble a genuine experience.
A short demo is one thing, but life goes
We write (and tell our clients) consistently about how difficult it is to obtain the bank account information of litigation opponents without first getting a court order. There are people out there who will charge you to trick banks into divulging this information, but they break the law when they do this.
If you are
The Supreme Court struck down DOMA’s definition of marriage as unconstitutional today in a 5 to 4 decision written by Justice Kennedy. With all the talk of the expansion of benefits for same-sex couples, it has gone largely unnoticed that at least one privilege of same-sex spouses will be eliminated rather than expanded: the ability
What does the Supreme Court’s decision this week about the Privileges and Immunities Clause mean to investigators?
That they need to continue having a good national network to help one another.
The Court this week upheld unanimously a Virginia law that grants the right to see documents under the state’s Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)
What does it really mean when an investigator says that they are going to do a background search on a person and track down all the relevant documents “on the public record”? Well, let’s start with what it doesn’t mean: bank documents and cell phone records are not public record. Any investigator who tells you he can track these down for you is ostensibly promising to break more than a couple of laws to get you that information. In addition, given that he’s acting as your agent, odds are it could get you in a heap of trouble as well.
So what can you expect instead? Below is a list of the various public documents that you should expect from your investigator when investigating a person. Future blog posts will detail similar lists for background research on companies and for asset searches.
Continue Reading Scratching the Surface: Due Diligence and Public Record Searches
The media seems to be having a good chuckle over the recent legal tiff between hedge fund manager Daniel Shak and his ex-wife, professional poker player Beth Shak. The couple divorced about three years ago, but Daniel is requesting that the court amend their divorce settlement. He argues that his wife hid assets from him
We have had a number of recent cases involving foreign companies who entered into large-scale sale agreements with American-based corporations. These companies are run by sophisticated, experienced executives. In most instances, the agreements were for millions of dollars’ worth of merchandise.
Both sides hired attorneys who scrutinized the proposed contracts. They carefully considered payment and