Disputes Investigations

In a legal dispute, information is king. Parties armed with intelligence and evidence immeasurably improve the strength of their position. We help clients to unearth key information that substantiates their claims, empowering them to pursue credible action in court, and robust settlement negotiations outside the courtroom. Our worldwide investigations are focused relentlessly on securing winning outcomes for our clients, including in these areas:

Our Services Include

Adverse investigations and relationships

We shed light on the true activities, operations and relationships of adverse parties. We regularly probe financial performance, commercial trading arrangements, and current operations, particularly where these are concealed to protect the adversary.

Substantiating wrongdoing

We turn allegations, suspicions and claims into demonstrable facts. We regularly substantiate fraud, misrepresentation, wrongful trading, breach of contract, collusion, financial misconduct, misappropriation, corruption, concealment of assets, unjust enrichment or other nefarious conduct. We facts and events are difficult to prove, we add most value.

Crafting a legal strategy

Our work helps legal teams to determine what causes of action to pursue; which parties are liable and viable as targets for legal proceedings & recovery (see Asset Recovery); where to apply for disclosure; and how to devise an overarching path to victory.

Leverage and settlements

We unearth information that helps clients to achieve leverage and to enhance their position to reach an advantageous settlement. Where relevant, we chart alternative routes to victory, including by discreet engagement with third parties, who are able to unlock broader value to the client.

Our Work

Case Studies

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Defeating vexatious litigation

We were retained by a Fortune 500 financial institution defending spurious claims by a vulture fund seeking to pressure it into a large settlement payment. We uncovered a global network of counterparties and aggrieved investors, who had been victims of similar misconduct by the adversary. Drawing on documentary materials and witness testimony, our work was able to build a dossier showing the fund had routinely acted dishonestly, misrepresented, and defrauded its clients in a disparate range of cases. By uniting knowledge of all these cases, we ultimately helped our client to defeat spurious claims made by the fund, to demonstrate a pattern of dishonest behaviour, and to prevail in legal proceedings against the adversary.
Mining shareholder dispute over undeclared exports

We acted for the lead investor in a major African mining venture, taking action against its joint venture partner for alleged secret export of product. Our investigation was able to show that the adverse JV partner had set up parallel undeclared structures to export more than $50 million of product without sharing proceeds with his JV partner, our client. Our body of evidence was submitted in overseas litigation, which left the adversary with little choice but to settle with our client on advantageous terms.
Proving illicit collusion and conspiracy

We were retained by the victim of a suspected collusion scheme, who suffered losses of c.$100 million. We sought to substantiate suspicions that the losses had been triggered by inappropriate collusion between creditors and competitors. Our investigation into two global publicly listed corporations uncovered collusion between departments and teams that were in improper communication with each other. We combined analysis of regulatory disclosures, litigation records, social media and human intelligence, with relationship mapping to (a) uncover wrongdoing, and (b) identify subpoena targets. The information materially strengthened our client’s position and advanced a settled resolution.
Unearthing adverse conduct to achieve settlement

We were retained by a top 20 global brand that was unlawfully overcharged and extorted by a service provider. Our work discreetly canvassed the other clients of the service provider and revealed a similar pattern of inappropriate charges and deceit. We were able to gather evidence of earlier wrongdoing, and to leverage that vulnerability. We were also able to learn how the provider had settled earlier cases to inform an effective resolution strategy, which resulted in a multimillion dollar saving.