Investigative services aren't products on a shelf; they're methods matched to a question. The same surveillance skills serve an infidelity case, a custody dispute, and an insurance-fraud file. What changes is the goal, the legal context, and the shape of the evidence you need at the end. Here's the field guide.
The foundation
Surveillance
Discreet, lawful observation of a subject in public, documented with timestamped photo and video. Surveillance answers what is actually happening — daily activities, meetings, movements — and underpins most other services on this page. Expect an investigator to plan around the windows most likely to matter (evenings, weekends, specific events) rather than billing aimless hours. You receive: a chronological report with supporting photos and video.
Domestic
Infidelity & cheating spouse investigations
The most common reason individuals call a PI. A focused surveillance effort — often in the range of 10 to 20 field hours — documents whether a partner is where and with whom they claim. Done professionally, it is completely confidential; the subject never learns an investigation happened. The answer is sometimes reassuring, sometimes not, but either way it replaces months of corrosive doubt with facts. You receive: documented proof, one way or the other, usable in divorce proceedings if it comes to that.
Family court
Child custody & welfare investigations
When children may be at risk, courts want evidence, not accusations. Investigators document violations of custody orders, neglect, endangerment, substance abuse around children, and the presence of prohibited individuals — patterns established over multiple observations, not a single snapshot. This is delicate work: it must be thorough enough to persuade a judge and restrained enough to survive cross-examination. You receive: a court-ready record your family-law attorney can act on.
Locates
Skip tracing & missing persons
Finding people. For subjects avoiding contact — debtors, defendants dodging service, absent witnesses — investigators combine restricted-access databases (address history, utility connections) with real field work. For missing family members or potential victims of foul play, the work resembles police detective work: interviews, records, and legwork. You receive: a verified current location, or an honest account of what was tried.
Due diligence
Background investigations
Deeper than an online "people search": criminal history across jurisdictions, civil litigation, asset and business records, professional licensing, and reputation interviews where appropriate. Individuals use them to vet a new partner, caregiver, or tenant; businesses use them for hires, partners, and pre-litigation asset checks. You receive: a sourced report separating verified fact from rumor.
Litigation support
Criminal defense & civil investigations
Police investigations build one theory of a case; defense investigators test it. That means re-interviewing witnesses, locating new ones, re-walking scenes, reviewing timelines, and developing evidence the original investigation missed — the difference, sometimes, between a plea and an acquittal. Civil litigators use the same skills for witness location, evidence development, and testimony support. You receive: investigative work product for your attorney, and an investigator prepared to testify.
Legal logistics
Process service
Delivering subpoenas, summonses, and divorce papers so a case can move forward — with proof of service the court accepts. Agencies that also skip trace excel here, because the hardest serves are on people who don't want to be found. You receive: completed service, documented, fast.
Firms also commonly handle insurance-fraud documentation, protective-order violations, asset searches, and undercover work. If your situation doesn't fit a label above, describe it plainly in a consultation — good investigators tailor the method to the question.