Questions attorneys ask before the first assignment

No. Case Theory Investigations is retained by attorneys and works under counsel's direction as part of trial preparation. If you are an individual with a legal matter, speak with your attorney and have their office contact us.

Most new matters can begin within one to two business days of the intake call. Rush assignments completed in under 48 hours are accepted when the court calendar requires it, subject to availability.

The names of the parties for a conflicts check, the next court setting or deadline, and the relevant discovery or file materials. From there, scope is confirmed in writing before work begins.

Criminal defense, civil litigation, family and custody matters, personal injury, employment disputes and insurance or fraud investigations.

Yes. Files transfer electronically, updates come by phone or email, and reports are delivered in a format your office can file directly.

Hourly, in quarter-hour increments, at rates that vary by the type of work — interviews, field investigation, complex assignments, rush turnarounds and testimony are priced differently. A current rate card is provided at the intake call along with an estimate for your scope. Larger matters may be handled on retainer.

Yes, there is a short minimum engagement, and testimony carries a minimum block because the day is committed. Both are set out clearly at intake so nothing on the invoice is a surprise.

By scoping to a specific factual question rather than an open instruction to investigate. A tightly scoped assignment — locate and interview one witness, document one scene — is often worth more to a case than open-ended hours.

Yes. The regular service area covers the Albuquerque metro and the surrounding counties, and statewide assignments are accepted by arrangement. Travel outside the regular area is quoted before the assignment begins.

In a written memorandum with the date, time, location, who was present and the substance of what was said. Recorded interviews are available where preservation matters, and recordings are delivered with the report rather than summarized in place of it.

Yes. Reports are written with testimony in mind, and the investigator is available for hearings, depositions and trial, including standby time when witness order is uncertain.

That depends on the posture of the matter and is counsel's call. Reports are written on the assumption that they may be produced, which is the safer assumption in every case.

You are told immediately, usually by phone, so counsel can decide what is reduced to writing and when. An investigator who reports only helpful facts leaves you unprepared for what the other side already knows.

Electronic transfer or a downtown drop-off, whichever your office prefers. Case material is handled as confidential work product and is not discussed outside the engagement.

Anything unlawful or that would taint the resulting evidence: contacting represented parties, obtaining protected records by pretext, accessing another person's devices or accounts, or taking an assignment whose evident purpose is to locate someone protected by a court order.

Where it is lawful, proportionate and likely to produce evidence a court will find relevant. It is scoped explicitly at intake, and it is frequently not the right tool for the question being asked.