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During these unprecedented times, as many companies globally are at a standstill or greatly interrupted in their business, Bearden Investigative Agency has quickly adapted their daily practices during this pandemic & continue to persevere. With an agile business model BIA already had infrastructure in place to be flexible and resilient in the face of the pandemic restrictions without missing a beat. Wes Bearden, CEO and Chairman of Bearden Investigative Agency, issued a memo

Bearden Investigative Agency would like to update you on the measures we are taking during COVID-19 to ensure minimum disruption to case work, while ensuring we protect the interests of our employees at this unprecedented time. Our team of world class Investigators are extremely dedicated and flexible. They are working diligently to ensure there is no disruption to your investigative case work and reporting. BACKGROUND INVESTIGATIONS , DUE DILIGENCE , OPPOSITION RESEARCH , &

Mike Thompson, COO of Bearden Investigative Agency is an investigator who joined BIA in 2017. Michael Thompson graduated from John Moore’s University in Liverpool, England with a NVQ Level 4 in Policing Studies. He came to Bearden Investigative Agency with considerable experience as a Police Officer, Asset Protection Executive & training manager for multiple high profile retail department stores. Mike Thompson has expertise in the field of covert surveillance , prolific off

IOWA ASSOCIATION OF PRIVATE INVESTIGATORS September 13, 2018 JAMES “WES” BEARDEN, ATTORNEY Bearden Investigative Agency, Inc. © 2018 Bearden Investigative Agency, Inc. All rights reserved. Disclaimer: This outline is for the purposes of CLE or other organized training. Although several statutes and case cites are referenced below, the law may have changed, it may be out dated or it may not apply to the state or local you are located in. Please consult an attorney and do not

If you have spent any amount of time online recently, then it’s likely you have heard of the General Data Protection Regulation. GDPR is a piece of legislation governing data privacy in the European Union that came into effect on May 25, 2018. Chatter online leading up to the date of enforcement, tended to prey on the public’s fear of change and the unknown. While this legislation could have a far-reaching impact on some of the world’s biggest technology companies, including

At Home DNA Testing Kits: Who Owns Your DNA? Over the past several years, at-home DNA testing kits have become increasingly popular. The market for such testing was estimated at $70 million in 2015 and is rising quickly given the ease and availability of such products. Now more than ever, Americans are seeking to discover their ethnicity, the heritage of their ancestors and/ or find family members. While it is tempting to just swab your cheek or spit in a tube to answer these

Are you concerned that your conversations have been compromised? Are executives in your corporation suspected potential targets of being eavesdropped on or being compromised? Are bids, financials and negotiations or your next move now out in the domain before you desire it? by: Martin Hernandez Below are some of the top indicators or signs that you are being bugged, wiretapped or in need of a Technical Surveillance Counter-Measures (“TSCM”) Inspection: Your confidential busin

Prior to establishing a relationship with a business or individual, it is important to conduct a thorough background investigation to mitigate any potential risks. Very often, corporations and individuals enlist the services of the highly skilled investigators at Bearden Investigative Agency, to conduct deep background checks that go well beyond the average superficial inquiry. Our in-depth background investigations have helped major corporations, as well as small firms, veri

Technology makes it easy for homeowners to order toilet paper with a voice command, but there are legal considerations when listings have devices that can record audio or video. by Wes Bearden Selling a home can be frustrating to homeowners. They’re asked to allow strangers into their home. They may never receive feedback and are left to wonder, “Why didn’t that last buyer bite?” What do anxious sellers do? They get an extra set of ears. Many homeowners have installed securit

I recently returned from this year’s World Association of Detectives annual conference in New Delhi, India, and I can say with certainty that few conferences I have attended involve as much pomp and circumstance as this year’s conference. Founded in 1925, the World Association of Detectives is a global alliance of Investigators and Security professionals of which I am an active member. The local members in New Delhi created an excellent atmosphere of comradery and global netw

Recently, I was meeting with a client corporation in downtown Houston who was about to undergo some substantial employment litigation. They had yet to hire outside counsel. And, during the meeting asked whether or not they should just get rid of the terminated employee’s laptop, phone and office papers. What should they do? Obviously, we as investigators shouldn’t provide legal advice to potential clients. However, there are times as an investigator when you need to realize t

The aftermath of Hurricane Harvey has been, and will continue to be, a rush of rebuilding and reinvesting in and around the Houston area. Natural disasters such as hurricanes and tornados result in a multitude of property, injury, and liability claims. Investigating these claims comes in the normal course of our business and likely yours. In addition to damage assessments, verification of liability, and documentation of injuries, other substantial investigative issues arise w

Many times, we are asked to serve an individual or company that is overseas. International process service is no easy task. Whether by third party subpoena or summons, effectuating service can be a daunting task. With the cost and time associated with international process service, you need to ensure you hire a process server that is familiar and experienced with the procedures so that your service is handled efficiently. First, there is the initial inquiry to locate the ind

Business tourism is a fast growing segment of the world’s largest industry sector with Conventions becoming a staple of business activity. Major cities such as Dallas, Houston and New Orleans bring millions of visitors each year for convention related business. New Orleans hosted a record 10.45 million visitors for tourism related business in 2016, much of that convention or event based. Comparatively, Dallas had over 25 million visitors. These big numbers keep us at Bearde

Al Pacino’s character in the Godfather 2 utters the line to his colleague and soon to be turncoat, “In this room [my father] taught me to keep your friends close, but your enemies closer.” Not bad advice, particularly in our business. Many times, we are hired to do just that. Find out what the “enemy” is doing in litigation. But, in the age of Facebook, Snapchat, Twitter, and Instagram, when do you get too close? Can the law prohibit you from getting too friendly? The answer

In today’s complex world, business and private matters often cross state lines and sometimes even reach into other countries. The same can be true for private investigations. A corporate investigation may involve a number of businesses in different locales. Even investigations involving domestic matters can traipse across state lines. Most large cases these days involve multiple witnesses and different states, if not multiple countries. Extra care needs to be taken in cases i

As we saw during the recent political season, it can be a time that is often fraught with endless pundit chatter, heated confrontations and sensational headlines. It is the time for all that opposition research to bear fruit, and it’s usually not pretty. Conducting research on your political opponent(s) is standard practice these days for many people who are running for public office. It just makes sense, particularly in heated campaigns that may be covered by the media. But

Drone technology continues to outpace drone policy, particularly in the thorny area of privacy. While there are many benefits to the use of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), there are increasing concerns about drones’ impact on individual privacy and their ability to collect personal data that could be used commercially. The National Telecommunications & Information Administration (NTIA) recently released a voluntary “best practices” guide for commercial and non-commercial dr

And how important are they to your legal case? Email usage is making national headlines these days for obvious reasons, but this isn’t going to be another blog post coaching you on how to properly handle electronic communications or what you shouldn’t include in e-messages. Yes, you need to be very careful about anything you put in any email because everything is saved forever and ever – and ever. Yes, you need to follow your business’s or organization’s rules and proced

Although that question may not be as serious as Hamlet’s famous soliloquy which ponders life and death, it is for investigators a common conundrum. Should I audio record my witness interviews or not in a civil matter? What about the attorney who has directed me not to do so? Why are they doing that? What alternatives do I have? Is it a good idea to record every interview or to not record any of them? In Texas, and thirty-nine other states, one party covert audio recordings ar