Investigation services
Corporate and board investigations
Director, executive and organisational conduct, conflicts of interest and governance concerns.
A source-referenced account of conduct, events and material gaps.
Start with an appropriate instructing arrangement.
Corporate concerns can involve the people who ordinarily approve expenditure, hold records or receive reports. Before enquiries begin, the appointment establishes who has authority to commission the work, provide material and approve changes. It also identifies an appropriate reporting line and potential conflicts.
A matter involving a director or senior executive may call for instructions through external counsel, an authorised committee or another appropriately unconflicted person. The investigation scope should follow the material questions and intended decision, rather than a broad mandate to search for wrongdoing.
Follow conduct, relationships and decisions.
The work can bring supplied records, lawful entity research and authorised witness enquiries together around a specific governance or commercial concern. Possible factual subjects include:
- Alleged director, executive, senior management or board-related misconduct.
- Undisclosed interests, related-party dealings and conflicts requiring examination.
- Procurement decisions, supplier arrangements, expenses and approval sequences.
- Suspected misuse of organisational information, assets or resources.
- Transactions or material decisions requiring a source-referenced reconstruction.
Organise the material before drawing conclusions.
A review may connect relevant declarations, communications, supplied transaction records, approvals and available entity information. The source record should identify what was received, the period it covers and any limits in completeness. An extract can be useful without standing for the whole record.
Entity and relationship summaries distinguish a recorded association from an allegation or an unresolved identity match. A common address, unusual payment or apparent personal connection can frame an enquiry. It does not establish misconduct by itself. Explanations are considered against the wider material available.
Start with your question
Which enquiry fits the decision ahead?
These starting points help frame the discussion. The agreed scope may combine relevant enquiries, depending on the question and the available information.
What happened in a disputed decision or action?
- Relevant enquiry
- Examine the events, management or director conduct and records relevant to the concern.
- Possible output
- A factual chronology, relevant accounts and an assessment of what remains unresolved.
Corporate and board investigations · This service
What supports a concern about a transaction or relationship?
- Relevant enquiry
- Examine suspected dishonesty involving supplier relationships, approvals or the use of organisational resources.
- Possible output
- Document-led findings, relevant witness evidence and a source-referenced assessment of the suspected conduct.
What is known about a proposed supplier or counterparty?
- Relevant enquiry
- Research the entity, relevant principals and recorded relationships using lawful sources.
- Possible output
- An entity and source profile distinguishing established information, possible matches and verification limits.
A recorded association does not establish wrongdoing. Factual investigation and intelligence work do not replace legal, financial or technical advice, or provide a complete background clearance.
The detail behind the enquiry.
Explore the scope, evidence requirements and practical considerations.
Test the sequence through relevant accounts.
Issue-led interviews explore a person’s role, authority, direct knowledge and opportunity to observe the relevant events. Supporting documents can be identified during the interview, with their role in the account made clear. Where statements are instructed, the prepared account is returned for review and correction.
A material chronology links decisions and events to their sources. It preserves differing accounts and approximate dates rather than smoothing them into a single unsupported sequence. Follow-up questions should explain which gap they address and why the additional enquiry is relevant.
Provide a traceable account for review.
The agreed output may include an issues schedule, document and source record, entity or relationship summary, chronology, statements and a factual report. The report identifies supporting evidence, competing explanations, analysis and limitations. A board or legal team should be able to follow a material proposition to the source relied upon.
The enquiry can identify factual gaps and proportionate further work. Legal conclusions, forensic accounting opinions and specialist technical examinations remain distinct assignments requiring appropriate expertise and authority. A factual report does not determine the organisation’s governance response or guarantee a recovery.
Keep changes and access within the appointment.
New participants, records or allegations can affect the scope, reporting line or handling arrangements. Material changes are discussed with the authorised instructing person. Confirm who may receive working material and final reporting, and how source documents will be transferred, before access is extended.
Before we begin
Practical questions.
Practical questions.
Can you examine a suspected conflict of interest?
The factual scope can review relevant declarations, decisions, supplied records and lawful entity information. The report explains supported relationships and their context. A connection alone is not treated as misconduct.
Can external lawyers instruct the work?
Yes. The investigation can address the legal team’s factual questions and reporting needs. The instructing lawyers determine legal strategy and any privilege arrangements.
Can the first stage be a document review?
Yes. A defined review can organise the material, develop a chronology and identify useful further enquiries before a larger assignment is considered.
What if the record is incomplete?
The report identifies the missing material, its effect on the question and any proportionate next steps. It does not fill a gap with an assumed event or certify records that were not verified.
Related services
Begin with a clear brief
Set the questions for the enquiry.
Describe the conduct or decision requiring examination and the proposed instructing and reporting arrangement.