Surveillance

When you are deciding whether this service fits your case, what usually matters most is what it can realistically help with, where the limits are, and when it tends to make the biggest difference. This page starts with what the service can realistically help with, where the limits are, and how to decide whether it belongs in the plan.

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How Does This Service Work?

Surveillance Services

You know something isn't right - but knowing it and proving it are two different things. Dated observations with clear source context can help the client, counsel and court evaluate conflicting accounts alongside the other available evidence.

Undercover surveillance operations
Spot-check verification assignments
Pattern/routine surveillance planning
Custody-exchange compliance observations
Overnight residency and shared-household pattern documentation
Behavior pattern documentation
Cohabitation and routine verification
Date-stamped observation records

Which Investigation Types Use This Service?

Investigative tools are applied to case goals. These are the investigation types that most often use surveillance.

Infidelity and Affair Investigations

Clarify suspected infidelity with lawful observations and a dated account of what was and was not established.

High Net Worth Divorce Investigations

Organize business, ownership and property-use leads in a financially complex divorce without promising a complete financial audit.

Child Custody Investigations

Document caregiving routines, exchanges and specific safety concerns with observable facts, sources and clear limits.

Parental Kidnapping and Unauthorized Removal Investigations

Organize child-location leads and movement timelines for coordination with counsel and law enforcement; a PI is not an emergency responder.

Parenting Plan Investigations

Compare the actual order with dated exchanges, missed time and communication records instead of relying on general accusations.

Alimony and Spousal Support Investigations

Document disputed work, cohabitation and living-pattern facts for attorney review without assuming they change a support obligation.

Cohabitation Investigations

Document repeated shared-residence and routine indicators, distinguishing a pattern from an isolated visit.

Parental Fitness Investigations

Document observable supervision, caregiving and environment concerns without diagnosing a parent or acting as a custody evaluator.

Financial Support Investigations

Check work activity, residence and financial leads relevant to a disputed support claim; counsel addresses the legal effect.

Court Order Investigations

Connect a specific order provision with dated conduct, communications and source-based documentation of possible noncompliance.

Protection Order Investigations

Preserve incident chronology and corroborating sources while keeping immediate safety and law-enforcement response ahead of PI intake.

Domestic Violence Investigations

Preserve lawful incident and communication evidence without delaying emergency help or substituting for safety planning and treatment.

Washington Law and Service Planning Sources

These public references are here to help you understand the legal boundaries that shape service planning. During intake, we sort through method fit, legal context, and practical limits before investigation work begins.

What Should You Expect From This Service?

Each surveillance engagement is planned during intake so you understand the plan, the likely deliverables, and where the limits are before work begins.

Service availability: Surveillance is planned around fit, legal boundaries, and whether it is likely to produce useful documentation.
Pricing structure: The service package is $1,500 and includes 10 service hours and a $150 expense credit. Travel time, preparation time, and any applicable surcharges are deducted from the available service hours in 1-hour blocks under the current pricing rules. Report writing is billed separately at $150 per hour.
Intake response: Most non-emergency inquiries receive same-day or next-business-day response.
Reporting: Every assignment ends with organized reporting rather than loose notes that leave you guessing what matters.

Related Evidence and Planning Guides

Lawful surveillance and its limits: Understand why purpose, method and lawful access matter.
Online research versus field investigation: Choose the method that can actually answer the factual question.

Frequently Asked Questions About Surveillance

When does it make sense to use surveillance?

Surveillance can help test a specific factual question through lawful observations during agreed activity windows, such as an exchange time or residence-use pattern. Coverage is limited to what can actually be observed, and a session may be inconclusive. Plan timing, lawful access, travel and budget before work begins.

How is surveillance usually planned?

Planning is shaped during intake around timing, legal boundaries, likely evidence sources, and whether the method should stand alone or be paired with something else.

Can surveillance be combined with other work?

Yes. Many family-law matters need more than one method. When that happens, the combination is planned up front so each step supports the same underlying question.

Need help deciding whether this service fits?

Tell us what is happening and what you hope this service will clarify. We will help you understand whether it fits your case and what the next step should be before investigation work begins.

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