Finding & Backgrounding People

Research MadnessMarch 22, 2010

When Do You Need to Research People?

• You are searching for a job and want to learn more about the employees at a firm.

• You are conducting client development.

• You need to find the address of a defendant for proper service of process.

• You need to identify experts in a field.

• You are appearing before a judge and want to know more about her record.

• Others?

Specialized Directories

• Directories of Courts & Judges research guide

• Directories of Lawyers research guide

• Directories of Expert Witnesses– Zimmerman’s Research Guide– WorldCat:

Witnesses—United States—Directories

Words of Warning

• Today’s focus is on freely-available resources, or subscription resources which are available to Duke users.

• Your law firm may have access to a wider variety of premium people-finding tools:– Westlaw PeopleMap (or WestlawNext)– LexisNexis SmartLinx

Key to Successful Fact Research

• When you need to research any factual information, consider this question:

“Who cares?”

• The answer will determine the best starting place to find the facts you need.

The “Who Cares” Rule

• The “Who cares?” principle also applies to people-finding, but could be adjusted to:

“Who knows?”

• Consider the amount of information we give out about ourselves regularly.

The GovernmentFederal State County/Local

• Social Security Administration

• Internal Revenue Service

• Federal Election Commission: campaign contributions

• DMV• Tax

department• Other

licensing boards (professional & recreational)

• County clerk: vital records (born, married, divorced, died)

• Tax assessor: Real property & some assets

• Board of Education

• Public library: records & contact info

Data Brokers

• There are also a lot of private companies that know a lot about you!– ChoicePoint (purchased by LexisNexis)– Intelius

• Marketers buy this information and use it to target advertising.– Do Not Call: https://www.donotcall.gov/ – Stop Credit Card Offers:

https://www.optoutprescreen.com

People-Finding Tools & Strategies

Basic Web Searches

• Google (with advanced search tips)• Pipl: search by name, email address,

online username, phone numbers• Birthdatabase: limited birthday & address

information; links to premium reports• ZoomInfo: free front-end to Intelius; links

to premium reports

Addresses & Phone Numbers

• Anywho: online phone directory; current listings only (no cellular)

• FoneFinder: Number information lookup• Westlaw: NEWMOVERS database• LexisNexis: Locate a Person Nationwide

database (Public Records > View More Sources); includes current & past addresses

• Google Maps & Bing Maps for satellite views

Vital Records

• Generally held at county level.

• “Public record” ≠ “free on the Internet”!

• Minimum requirement: available upon inspection.

• Research/copying service may be available (for a fee).

• Some governments will make records available online.

Asset Searches

• Real property records are generally available at the county government level.– Durham County (NC)– Orange County (NC)

• Commercial data brokers may be able to access more asset information.

• Unclaimed.org: Does someone owe you?

Political Information

• Voter registration: also county government level. Searchability will vary. – Durham County (NC): gives back addresses– Los Angeles County (CA): adds required

fields

• Campaign contributions– FEC Search– OpenSecrets– State searches will vary

Professionals

• LinkedIn: some info publicly visible

• Employer directories– Governments (may include salaries)– Academic sector– Company information resources (3/26

workshop) usually include key personnel

• Presentations/activities (experts)

Bad Professionals

• Information on license status and disciplinary proceedings are generally kept at state government level.

• Doctors: State Medical Boards [NC]

• Lawyers: State Bar [NC]

• Electricians [NC]

• Plumbers [NC]

Brushes with the Law

• Current inmates (and some past)– Federal: Bureau of Prisons– State: Departments of Corrections [NC]

• Criminal history– CriminalSearches.com (limited info)– Megan’s Law registries [NC]– Local papers may include police reports. [NY]

• Lawsuits– Docket & case research (3/29 workshop)

The Inevitable

• Death certificates are maintained at the county level.

• Social Security Death Index: Deaths reported to SSA.

• Obituaries can provide a wealth of information about a person– and their survivors.– America’s Newspapers– Local papers, again

Pitfalls of People-Finding

• Privacy concerns– “Legitimate purpose”– Identity theft risks– Human-flesh search engines

• Ethical concerns (pretexting)• Data errors

– Sound-alike names– Misspellings– Incorrect information – no warranties

Questions?

Jennifer L. BehrensReference Librarianbehrens@law.duke.edu(919) 613-7198

• Zimmerman’s Research Guide• Directories of Courts & Judges• Directories of Lawyers• LexisNexis• Westlaw

Upcoming Research Madness

THIS WEEK NEXT WEEK

MON. Finding & Backgrounding People

Finding Forms, Court Rules, & Court Filings

TUE. Course Selection & Career Planning (3043)

Essential Elements of the 2L Job Search (12:15; rm 3041)

WED. Free & Low-Cost Legal Research

THU. Tackling Tax Research

FRI. Business & Company Information