The Art of Fact Investigation: Creative Thinking in the Age of Information Overload

by Philip Segal

Overview

Investigation is as much art as it is science. This book helps lawyers, investigators and others to get the information they need for litigation, due diligence and finding assets. New York-based investigative lawyer Philp Segal shows through real-life examples the way a good investigation actually works. Which techniques of searching, database use and interviewing are the most effective? The Internet has made searching for facts faster but has also made investigation more complicated: Within the vast sea of information, facts about a person could be anywhere. More than the need for powerful databases, Segal argues, the most important things an investigator can bring to the job are creativity and an open mind.

Product Details

BN ID:	2940153711317
Publisher:	Philip Segal
Publication date:	08/22/2016
Sold by:	Smashwords
Format:	eBook
File size:	244 KB

About the Author

Philip Segal is a New York attorney with extensive experience in corporate investigations in the U.S. for AmLaw 100 law firms and Fortune 100 companies. Segal worked previously as a case manager for the James Mintz Group in New York and as North American Partner and General Counsel for GPW, a British business intelligence firm. Prior to becoming an attorney, Segal was the Finance Editor of the Asian Wall Street Journal, and worked as a journalist in five countries over 19 years with a specialization in finance. In 2012, he was named by Lawline as one of the top 40 lawyers furthering legal education. Segal has also been a guest speaker at Columbia University on investigating complex international financing structures, and taught a seminar on Asian economics as a Freeman Scholar at the University of Indiana. He is the author of the book, The Art of Fact Investigation: Creative Thinking in the Age of Information Overload (Ignaz Press, 2016).

Editorial Reviews

04/11/2016
Attorney Segal gives a primer for litigators on discovering facts that the opposition may be actively (or passively) concealing, and specifically on finding hidden assets. This brief work is aimed mainly at civil litigators, but it has tips for anyone who needs to gather information on anyone else. Segal draws interesting parallels and contrasts with modern art, cryptanalysis, and Sherlock Holmes. He shows how to think outside the simple Google search, which is often inaccurate and always incomplete, and points out that, given the constraints of time and money in any investigation, a healthy imagination is a useful sorting tool in going through the limitless data returned by any search these days. He offers guidance on how to find the best people to interview, with some suggestions on how to approach them. There are cautions about legal and ethical behavior and the possible consequences of stepping out of bounds. The appendices give suggestions on how and where to start gathering information from both free and paid services. This is a useful book for the ultra-inquisitive reader. (BookLife)

Publishers Weekly

2015-12-31
A manual for readers interested in tracking down facts that others might prefer to keep hidden.In this debut work, Segal draws on his decades of experience in law and journalism to provide an introduction to basic investigative techniques. He impresses upon readers that investigation is a complex process in which researchers may be unable to draw absolute conclusions, requiring them to make judgments or pursue new avenues. The book uses modern art as a metaphor: "Just as we can stare forever at Picasso's work and not know the number of pears there are, we can look all we want at databases and public records, but we may need to move on to interviewing relatives and neighbors." Segal provides a list of commonly used subscription databases and offers strategies for maximizing their usefulness as well as advice on using Google and other, more familiar sources. Throughout, he emphasizes the importance of following relevant laws, particularly for investigators whose work will be used in court; he offers plenty of cautionary tales about cases that were thrown out due to illegal information-gathering. He also includes several anecdotes from his own investigative work, demonstrating how his team located a divorcing spouse's hidden assets, why it's necessary to explore alternate spellings of words, and how a small investment in an interview can save thousands of dollars during a lawsuit's discovery phase. Throughout, Segal maintains an engaging, conversational tone ("Relying only on Google is like giving a carpenter just one tool—a sledge hammer—and saying, ‘Build me a house' "), and the text is never dull. Appendices provide guidance for conducting interviews, locating assets, and getting to know public-records systems. The result is a valuable resource for investigators of all sorts, from students to professionals. A brief but comprehensive and enthusiastic guide to conducting thorough, legal investigations.

Kirkus Reviews