The purpose of this book is to provide the skills and information necessary to conduct effective and ethical investigations. The reader should note the importance of the operative words: "effective" in this context means an investigation that obtains results. The term "ethical" means not only an investigation that is conducted in a lawful manner, but also an investigation that is conducted in a manner that is not offensive to the normal standards of decency. In other words, an investigation that is conducted with a clear sense of professionalism. When an investigation involves unethical behavior, it is ultimately less effective and indicates a lack of skill. Effective and ethical investigations are the product of proper training and developed skills. It is learned behavior, not natural ability. Like most skills, proficiency in respect to the development of investigative skills concerns the issue of "failure." In many other endeavors, failure is a bad thing with bad consequences. In the context of investigations, it is a serious mistake to think in those terms for three reasons. First, the development of investigative experience is built upon learning what works and what doesn't. It is this process that sharpens one's skills, and with time, makes the investigator more effective. Secondly, the exploration may be useful in conducting a future investigation. For the investigator, the exploration process represents a beneficial experience in and of itself. Finally, it is important to think of an investigation as a process that does not end. An investigation may be cut short because of time considerations or cost benefit issues, but those are decisions independent of the process. Investigation almost always produces some beneficial result because there is almost always more known after an investigation than before. In other words, "success" is a matter of degree and the degree of success in investigations often comes down to two critical factors: identification and utilization of resources. This book addresses these two factors in such a way as to develop skills and enhance the degree of success. The notion of identification and utilization of resources may seem simple. In the "real world" it is not. Rather, it involves motivation, training and discipline because even a small increase in the degree of success can make a huge difference to the one seeking to benefit from the investigation. The point is this: while an investigation will almost always yield some benefit, there are situations were even a slight increase in the degree of success will make a real difference. This is the ultimate mission of an investigation - to reach a degree of success that makes a real difference. -- Types of Investigations -- There are a number of ways to classify investigations and some of those are as follows: - Accident / Reconstruction - Arson / Fire - Asset Search - Background Checks - Bounty Hunter - Bug Sweep, Bug Detection, TSCM - Cell Phone Records - Child Support / Custody - Civil - Computer Forensics / Cyber Crime - Corporate - Crime Scene - Criminal - Domestic - Due Diligence - Electronic Data Discovery - Electronic Surveillance - Executive Protection - Financial - Forensic - Fraud - General - Identity Theft - Infidelity / Cheating Spouse - Insurance Fraud - Judgment Recovery - Missing Persons - Mystery Shopper - People Locate / Skip Trace - Polygraph / Lie Detector - Process Service - Public Records - Repossessions - Surveillance - Trial Preparation - Video Surveillance / Photo Surveillance - Workers Compensation - Wrongful Death This book is a no nonsense tool for people who want or need to learn how to conduct investigations. It contains structured methodology for obtaining information by personal interviews and other means. Further, the book discusses and details a variety of resources and techniques that can be used to engage in lawful gathering of information.

A practical guide for notaries public commissioned in the State of Texas. It is an important and useful guide for paralegals, bank employees, insurance agency employees and anyone who serves as a notary public. -- WHAT IS A NOTARY PUBLIC? -- A notary or notary public is one of a class of persons authorized by law to serve as an official witness and/or one authorized to administer oaths. Others who may perform such functions can vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, but also may include military officers, court reporters, judicial officers, court clerks, law enforcement officers and other government employees. The specific definition of a notary public varies from source to source, but the various definitions given are similar. One national law encyclopedia, Corpus Juris Secundum, gives the following definition: A notary or notary public is a public officer whose function it is to attest and certify, by his hand and official seal, certain classes of documents, in order to give them credit and authenticity in foreign jurisdictions, to take acknowledgments of deeds and other conveyances, and certify them, and to perform certain official acts, chiefly in commercial matters. 66 C.J.S. Notaries, Section 1 Another national law encyclopedia, American Jurisprudence, Second Edition, offers a slightly different definition, which is also cited by Texas Jurisprudence, Third Edition, a state law encyclopedia by the same publisher, as follows: A notary public is a public officer who, in the performance of the notary public's duties, exercises a delegation of the state's sovereign power, as in attesting the genuineness of any deeds or writings in order to render them available as evidence of the facts therein contained and in administering oaths and attesting to the authenticity of signatures. Am. Jur. 2d Notaries Public, Section 1 Tex. Jur. 3d Notaries Public, Etc., Section 1 -- THE IMPORTANCE OF THE NOTARY PUBLIC -- Modern technology has profoundly increased the speed and volume of many human interactions. For the most part, these increases have resulted in positive improvements to life. The increased speed and volume of business activity creates more jobs, increases consumer satisfaction and reduces wasted time. For example, being able to e-file a tax return can save everyone concerned time and trouble. However, two important issues remain important in human interactions such as commerce (business activity). First, there is a continuing need to verify the identity of someone who is the party to a commercial, legal or governmental transaction. While verification technologies, ranging from PIN numbers to photographs to fingerprints, are useful, they are not always practical. In this regard the notary public plays an essential role in verifying the identity of people who sign a variety of documents, ranging from wills to deeds to releases of claims to powers of attorney. Secondly, there are times in the course of human interactions where sworn statements are important. History has made certain human frailties clear. One such human frailty is lying. People lie. People exaggerate. People embellish. However, sometimes telling the truth is essential in order for society to be able to rely upon business transactions, legal rights and so forth. For this reason, the practice of requiring that certain statements be made under oath or affirmation is used to signify the importance telling the truth under specific circumstances. Ultimately, the importance of the notary public today is reliance. Many people and businesses of all kinds daily rely upon a notary public's certification that a particular person signed a particular document or that a particular statement was made under oath.