At the end of a relationship it is a sad truth that many couples end up in a family law situation. They might require a solicitor to assist with the settlement of assets and finances, and of course children. There are a number of family law accredited solicitors in Australia and Integral Investigations works hand-in-hand with a number of them. 

A solicitor might advise their client that they should gather some evidence to prove that claims are in fact more than that – truth. A claim that is not backed up with evidence is just a claim.  There is where a private investigator can help in a family law matter.  You might be required to confirm a number of things that happened, or are still happening in the relationship – or even after the relationship. Some of these matters include:

• Proving another relationship existed before, or even after the dissolution of the relationship
• Child custody matters
• Showing that the spouse has been spending money belonging to the relationship
• Hiding money
• Proving that the spouse is working when they claim not to be
• Having access to the children but dropping them off at relatives instead
• Leaving the kids in a dangerous situation
• Consumption of drugs or alcohol 
• Proving any claims written in an Affidavit to be false – judges hate getting lied to!

There are two areas of investigative research we usually carry out when it comes to a family law investigation involving the courts. 

Surveillance

Surveillance is a very common tool in the private investigator’s arsenal as visual proof of a situation can’t be discarded. If we have video footage of a situation deemed wrong by the courts then this can have a massive effect on a decision by the court. 

Imagine the father has access to the children, but during that time goes to the pub and spends three hours drinking and leaving the kids to fend for themselves – surely this can’t be good for the kids so a court will almost always rule accordingly. There are dozens of situations of a similar nature where surveillance can make all the difference in a family law investigation. 

Computer Research

Our expert researchers spend all day on the computer researching for all sorts of purposes. A family law investigation is no different.  

Perhaps we need to establish who owns a particular property – or who the occupants of that property might be. Maybe we need to identify if there are any unknown assets that the client is not aware of and that the spouse has not declared. Are there any companies that may contain a combination of properties or assts. Our computer investigators can look into all this for you and advise your legal team so that the solicitors know where to attack. 

If you have any further questions relating to a family law investigation, just drop us a line by email or call us on the phone using the contact details below.