International commerce is increasingly complex and competitive. Multiple legal jurisdictions, convoluted compliance requirements, linguistic, social and ethical considerations combined with differing standards of business practice and ethics have led to a significant increase in litigation and arbitration.

Litigation is a costly undertaking and there are numerous issues that can influence the success or failure of such actions.

• Are the opposing parties financially capable of pursuing their claim?
• Are the defendants able to honour a final judgement?
• What can be learnt from the opposition’s prior litigation record?
• Are the underlying assumptions of a claim reasonable and based on the available facts?
• Are hypotheses used in the formulation of a claim consistent with industry norms?
• Are the expert witnesses on the opposing team fit for the job?

SVA investigators have considerable experience in the preparation and critique of complicated litigation cases, affording our clients both investigative and consulting support. Successful litigation requires both a planned and methodical approach; the SVA team understand this and apply exacting standards to ensure all elements of a case are fully addressed and can be presented to achieve maximum effect. Our consultants have the requisite background and experience to effectively support legal advisors and clients by providing skilled investigative and technical support in connecting with a variety of civil litigation claims.

Dealing with Staff defections

There are an ever increasing number of legal disputes arising from deliberately orchestrated staff defections and the related and serious implications of the loss of key corporate clients and proprietary data. In the face of such unethical practice, swift and decisive action to obtain injunctive relief is critical. This is not possible however without compelling evidence. SVA has very considerable experience in working closely with clients, legal counsel and other parties in support of the legal process; by collecting, collating and establishing the facts in a manner which can be swiftly utilised in legal proceedings. We work with clients to:

• Evaluate the likely implications of a significant staff defection
• Develop a strategic plan to defend the victimised business
• Advise on methods to prevent further staff defections
• Advise on methods to retain key clients
• Interview remaining staff and to identify those likely to be collaborating with hostile external parties
• Utilise computer forensics to identify evidence of malfeasance and to introduce it into proceedings where appropriate
• Utilise sophisticated link analysis software to analyse events and chronologies so that they can be introduced into evidence in a compelling way
• Work with counsel to draw up a statement of claim

Investigative Support

• Identifying, locating, retrieving and securing evidence
• Identifying and locating witnesses, including expert witnesses
• Determining financial status of the opposition
• Background investigations into the opposition, and their litigation history

Electronic Evidence Recovery

• Retrieval of deleted data
• Recovery and re-construction of deleted documents
• Establishment of timelines
• Identification of related parties or recipients of correspondence
• Rebuttal of claims

Witness Assessments

• Establishing the credibility of witnesses, their backgrounds and professional reputations. Determining whether their evidence has previously been accepted or disputed
• Verifying qualification and current status of ‘expert’ witnesses to be called by opposition

Our Approach

With our extensive experience in dealing with all aspects of litigation support we are able to apply a planned and methodical approach that will positively support legal counsel. We can analyse issues at hand, define requirements and bring valued experience and professionals who are recognised and respected in their fields. We work closely with management and legal advisors to address and support litigation in an efficient but cost effective manner.