“You’ve got to talk to…”

Solving the case by getting leads: when one source brings you dozens more

Our client needed to know about instances when an individual and his company lied to customers. This was not easy to find: many customers severed ties with the company without filing lawsuits.

The company was private and closely-held, leaving barely anything findable, From investors, number of employees and revenue, to former employees, assets and debts – it was all opaque. So, we started searching for people who had known the executive or people who had known of his reputation in the industry.

The logistics of figuring out who might know the company and CEO, who might be willing to speak with us, and finding their contact information consumed most of our time. Then, of the many people we attempted to contact, a fraction willingly spoke with us.

The few who spoke provided several more names of sources. Once one person opens up, the investigation blossoms with more information. We then could contact people who were warm to discussing their negative experiences. And some who spoke with us had already done their own research for their disputes, and shared it with us.

Here are sources that we have found to be amazing to get more and more leads.

• Opposing parties from past lawsuitsPeople who had public disputes in the courts often know of other disputes that never went to court. They then provide leads to more sources never found in the public record.
• Former job colleaguesPeople who used to work with the subject at past jobs are often disconnected enough from the subject that they will discuss general reputation and talk about other people who had disputes with the subject.
• Former business partnersThey provide sources of who the subject took advantage of in the past, such as an investor. The next interview with the investor often results in the names of more investors.
• Former spousesOften provide an entire history of disputes from different periods in the subject’s life.
• Creditors from a bankruptcyFinding the creditor that claimed the largest amount of money can lead to other creditors who had to fight to recoup their money.

Call for a free consultation at 415-905-0462