3/22/2010 Finding & Backgrounding People Research Madness March 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 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 Di t i f E t Wit – Zimmerman’s Research Guide – WorldCat : Witnesses—United States— Directories 1
3/22/2010 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 • 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. 2
3/22/2010 The Government Federal State County/Local • Social Security • DMV • County clerk : Administration vital records • Tax • Internal department (born, married, Revenue divorced, died) • Other Other Service • Tax assessor : licensing Real property & • Federal boards some assets Election (professional & Commission : • Board of recreational) Education campaign contributions • 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 g 3
3/22/2010 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 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 i inspection . ti • Research/copying service may be available (for a fee). • Some governments will make records available online. 4
3/22/2010 Asset Searches • Real property records are generally available at the county government level. – Durham County (NC) – Orange 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 g y ( ) q fields • Campaign contributions – FEC Search – OpenSecrets – State searches will vary Professionals • LinkedIn : some info publicly visible • Employer directories – Governments (may include salaries ) – Academic sector A d i t – Company information resources ( 3/26 workshop ) usually include key personnel • Presentations/activities (experts) 5
3/22/2010 Bad Professionals • Information on license status and disciplinary proceedings are generally kept at state government level. • Doctors : State Medical Boards [NC] • 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 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. p • Obituaries can provide a wealth of information about a person– and their survivors. – America’s Newspapers – Local papers, again 6
3/22/2010 Pitfalls of People-Finding • Privacy concerns – “Legitimate purpose” – Identity theft risks – Human-flesh search engines g • Ethical concerns (pretexting) • Data errors – Sound-alike names – Misspellings – Incorrect information – no warranties Questions? Jennifer L. Behrens Reference Librarian behrens@law.duke.edu (919) 613 7198 (919) 613-7198 • Zimmerman’s Research Guide • Directories of Courts & Judges • Directories of Lawyers • LexisNexis • Westlaw 7
3/22/2010 Upcoming Research Madness THIS WEEK NEXT WEEK MON. Finding & Backgrounding Finding Forms, Court Rules, People & Court Filings TUE. Course Selection & Essential Elements of the 2L Career Planning (3043) Job Search (12:15; rm 3041) WED. Free & Low-Cost Legal Research THU. Tackling Tax Research FRI. Business & Company Information 8
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