Business and legal matters
How Attorneys Use Private Detectives
Attorneys rely on detectives to find the facts that win cases, and to find them lawfully.
Key points
- Witness location and interviews
- Party, expert and asset research
- Evidence development and trial support
Witnesses
Finding witnesses who have moved and conducting well-documented interviews. See witness location.
Parties and experts
Litigation history, credentials and public statements of opposing parties and experts.
Assets and collectability
Asset searches before filing and post-judgment collection support.
Evidence and surveillance
Scene documentation, camera canvasses, online content capture and surveillance in damages cases.
Working under counsel
Detectives retained by counsel work at counsel's direction, which supports strategy and may protect work product. They don't contact represented parties directly.
Common questions
Do detectives work for both plaintiffs and defendants?
Yes, subject to conflict checks.
Can detectives testify?
Yes, about their observations and methods.
When should a firm bring in a detective?
Early, before evidence fades.
This guide is general information, not legal advice. Laws change and vary by state; consult an attorney about your situation. See our legal disclaimer.
Related services
Services connected to this guide.
Litigation Support Investigations
Case-focused investigation that supports discovery and trial strategy.
Legal & Litigation SupportAttorney Support Investigations
On-call investigative capacity for law firms and solo practitioners.
Legal & Litigation SupportWitness Location
Finding witnesses who have moved, changed names or stopped responding.
Keep reading
Related guides.
How to Find a Witness for a Case
How to find witnesses who moved or stopped responding: what to gather, locate methods, field verification, and lawful contact.
Business and legal mattersHow to Preserve Evidence Before a Lawsuit
What to preserve before litigation: documents, devices, video, online content and scenes, plus preservation letters and avoiding spoliation.
Costs, timing and processCan Private Detective Evidence Be Used in Court?
When private detective evidence is admissible: lawful collection, authentication, chain of custody, testimony and common reasons evidence fails.
Private detectives by city
Confidential inquiry
Have a question this guide didn't answer?
Call, email or send a short confidential inquiry. You'll get a straight answer about what's possible, what's lawful and what it would involve.