A PI client “consulted” us about devising a method of doing background research on his client’s customers. What he was really doing was trolling for ideas on how to do it without paying us for our assistance. We get that a lot.
The reason this approach doesn’t help the freeloader is a lack of understanding of the structure and use of information. For instance, he wanted to do Florida court searches but didn’t understand the significance of “hidden dockets” or even what they were. If he didn’t understand what hope did his client have?
He did not understand that decisions are not only made on the content of the data, but also the limitations of the data.
The limitations may include the following:
1. The extent of the data set from which your data was selected
2. The date-range or currency of the data
3. The overall quality of the original data set
4. The liabilities associated with using the data decision-making. For example, who is responsible if the data is wrong, and will the responsible party accept liability? If not, will you be sued by an aggrieved party looking for a deep pocket? Can you afford these risks?
Most PI’s think a disclaimer and lots of ‘weasel words’ in their reports will save them. These folks could be in for a rude awakening some day!
Issues surrounding the limitations of the data set being searched and the data provided need to be acknowledged by the end-user before the work commences. This must be provided in writing.
This is decision-making at the precipice of the unknown — beyond here be dragons.
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