Some tips to help find the right Workplace Investigator to meet your needs.
Are you in the position of having to hire a workplace investigator and are overwhelmed with the options? If so, this post should help clarify some of the things you need to consider when hiring an external investigator. As I write this, I am well aware of the appearance of bias as I am not a lawyer, but I am not writing this to persuade you to no go with a lawyer, but to encourage you to do your due diligence and weigh your options carefully.
1. Lawyer vs. non-lawyer
You may notice during your search that there are investigators that are lawyers and some that are not. In the province of Ontario, a non-lawyer can be designated as a workplace investigator as long as they pass the provincial process to become a private investigator. Lawyers are not required to complete this process and are deemed to be a qualified investigator once they pass the bar exam.
The benefit of hiring a lawyer to conduct your investigation is that they are usually on the front line of current civil caselaw. This is important when factoring in the protentional of future lawsuits. Another advantage to a lawyer is they are generally attached to a law firm that has multiple resources to assist with the investigation if required. Now for the not so great, the biggest complaint I hear from clients that first contacted a law office to conduct their investigation was the wait time. Clients that were hoping for a quick turnaround were shocked when told it could potentially be months. The second biggest complaint from clients is the fee’s associated to law offices were generally higher than that of non-lawyer investigators. Time and money are two big factors that you need to consider how big of a priority the investigation is.
Non-lawyer investigators can be harder to find as they generally rank lower on Google searches. This doesn’t mean they are less qualified than their lawyer counterparts, they may not have the resources to get higher in the Google rankings. These investigators may not be constrained with the same workload as a lawyer and in my own practice, can generally start and complete the investigation and report in a timely fashion.
2. What is the investigators experience?
The investigators previous experience should hold more weight on your decision to use a lawyer or not. Becoming a lawyer doesn’t necessarily provide the opportunity to hone their investigative or interviewing skills. Finding an investigator with previous investigative experience could greatly benefit you and the organization the investigation is being done for. Often, like in my case, I served as a police officer for over two decades, with most of that time spent as an investigator, often in roles conducting major investigations. Varying former investigative experience also helps the investigator think of the bigger picture and prevent tunnel vision, which can happen when you investigate the same type of offence repeatedly.
Who you choose to conduct your investigation should not be solely based on where they end up in your Google search. Take your time to look into the business and the investigator. Most investigators offer a free consult so take advantage of this and ask the questions. The investigator should help put your mind at ease that you are making the right choice.
I hope this information helps you in your journey, and as always, if you have any questions, please feel free to contact us.
