Detective

Detectives throughout the world

The profession, all over the world, allowed, is ignored, tolerated or prohibited according to the degree of democracy of the country considered or its aptitude to respect the Right of Defense, individual freedoms and the freedom of the Trade and Industry.

In the dictatorships, the profession is either prohibited, or comparable there with an auxiliary police force.

It is strictly regulated in a certain number of European countries like France (see further) or Belgium, but also Spain, Austria.

It is also regulated in Canada.

In other States the regulation was curiously removed (Swiss, in certain cantons for example), which appears paradoxical at one time when the exercise of this activity can prove to be sensitive so much for Individual freedoms (violation of the private life) that for the fundamental interests of the Nation (risk of espionage) if the profession had suddenly been exerted by not very scrupulous individuals.

In the Grand-Duchy of Luxembourg the occupation of private detective is not regulated. On the other hand the companies of guarding are held, they, to have an approval of the Ministry for Justice. There exists also a law for moraliser the performances of service exerted in commercial form what makes it possible to impose a ministerial authorization on those which exert in this legal form. Certain publicities thus mention sometimes a " approval of the Ministry for Justice" (which, in fact, relates to guarding, and the protection of people) of others a " authorization ministérielle" ( which concerns, in fact, the exercise of the occupation of tradesman) .

Certain states prohibit purely and simply the profession, like, for example, Mali… but it is authorized in Burkina Faso where it is placed under the supervision of the Minister for the National security and the Administration of the Territory.

In the United States the regulation vary depending on the States: some do not impose any authorization (Alabama, Alaska, Colorado, Idaho, the Mississippi, Missouri, Southern Dakota), others require conditions of standing controlled by the department of Justice and the FBI, a 3 years experiment or 6000 hours in the investigation, a formation based on the Scientific police, the criminal law, the knowledge of justice, criminology (...), these conditions being controlled by an examination: such is the case of California or the profession is controlled by and the service Security Office of investigation of the State.

There exist also certifications by professional technical organizations like that " of investigator juridique" decreed by the National NALI Association off Legal Investigators (National association of the Legal Investigators 21e street, Sacramento, CA 95814-3118 - California).

The legal investigator is specialized in research with legal and legal vocation: he must have good knowledge of the right and jurisprudence.

History

It is at the 12th century that appears, for the first time, the term enquestor , police chief of the King charged to supervise the administration of the baillifs and the seneshals.

But it is the 19th century which will bring the birth of the private agencies, such that they exist still today, with the opening, street Neuve Eustace Saint in Paris, of the office of the universal information, created by a former convict, become chief of the police force of safety, reconverted printer (he invented an unfalsifiable paper) then “intelligence agent”: Eugene-François Vidocq.

The France is the cradle of this profession with the creation of this first great multidisciplinary agency, as it created, in June 2006, the first diploma of State in the world having an international value (thanks to the new European standards L.M.D) and of equivalences with mainstream education.

It is not that in 1850 qu ' it was exported with the the United States with the creation of the Agency Pinkerton, former wet cooper and Scottish revolutionist who ensured the safety of the president of the United States Abraham Lincoln. A long time " tolérée" in France - and only aimed by a law dating from the war whose object, in the beginning, was to prohibit the access to the Jews of them - she finally was recognized and regulated in 2003 (see below).

Etymology

The French-speaking popular name of “detective” is borrowed of English detective ( to detect means to discover).

In the Anglo-Saxon countries, it acts of a police officer charged to lead the investigations (famous detectives of Scotland Yard).
a detective can also be a person who carries out research and/or spinning mills (on a purely private basis and subject to remuneration).

But this name is disputed more and more, even in the Anglo-Saxon countries where one returns, for example in the United States, with the name of private investigator (investigating private) to be different from the myth.

The word enquestor existed already in Former French to indicate, at the 12th century, of the agents of the king.

The term “Enquêteur of private law” allows, him, to as well fix the statute of the professional (nobody of private law and not of public law contrary to the police officers or gendarmes) like his field of intervention: private law.

The civil procedures and commercial, which do not raise of the official services of police force and gendarmerie, constitute the gasoline of the private investigators indeed because they do not intervene, or which very punctually, within the framework of penal matters.

The professionals in exercise use, in fact, several names: “detective”, private “private detective”, “Investigating”, “Investigating of private law”, “private Agent of research”, “Agent of private research”, “Intelligence agent various”, “Investigating of insurances”, the law which regulates them not giving any title to the profession and being satisfied to speak “about agency with private research”.

In the absence of a legal title (in France) there does not exist any protection against the usurpation of name, contrary to other countries, of which Canada where the law prohibited with the nontitular people of a license to claim itself private detective:

" No one cannot give place to believe that it acts as private investigator or of security agent or that it exploits an agency of private investigators or guarding if he does not hold a license delivered under the terms of present the loi".

French regulation

In France the function of investigator of private law is regulated and strictly framed. It is placed under the monitoring of the police superintendents and the officers of the national police.

Any cabinet, Moral person, must be titular of a prefectoral authorization, and any director, natural person, of an individual approval delivered by the prefect.

A formation - in particular legal - was made compulsory by a law of March 18th, 2003 and any private investigator must justify his professional qualification if it directs an agency or of his professional capacity if it is paid.

There does not exist " of ordre" institutional (type order of the doctors, room of the notaries, or lawyer bars), the law having given the capacity to control the profession:

with the prefects for the standing and the professional qualification
at the national ethics commission of safety for ethics

The law of July 12th, 1983, modified by the law of March 18th, 2003, reinforced the prerogatives of the profession by giving him a very precise definition which authorizes it to collect information and to carry out spinning mills:

" liberal profession which consists, for a person, to collect, even without making state of its quality nor reveal the object of its mission, of the information or information intended for thirds, for the defense of their intérêts".

This definition concerns very undertaken which would proceed to investigations whatever the name used and, for example, the leader of a company of " conseils" who claimed himself sometimes " consultant" , sometimes undertaken " of intelligence industrielle" , was condemned to have " carried on without authorization a privées." research activity;

Professional secrecy

The respect of the deontology is one of the very first conditions to follow the occupation, to inspire confidence and allow the " mandants" (customers which elects a private detective) to entrust their private secrecies, intimate, family, financial, commercial, industrial, medical with a private investigator or an investigator of insurances.

The private detectives and investigators can, by adhering at constrained company doctors, being to respect the deontology of this trade union or this association, but the first obligation, in all the countries of the world - at least moral if not legal - is not to reveal the information entrusted by a customer.

The disclosure of confidential information could, indeed, involve the bursting of the family unit, the loss of markets for the companies, the plundering of marks, the customers or trade secrets, even of the direct consequences on employment a company quite simply which can be put in liquidation.

There is not any doubt besides that the private detectives can have access to confidential informations even " sensibles" and the French legislator with same reinforced, by a law of January 23rd, 2006, conditions of approval of the investigators deprived because, precisely, of the significant data which they could hold.

A certain number of countries thus impose the obligation of the professional secrecy, that it is by a law specific to the profession, or simply by provisions of common right.

In France the private investigator is held with the professional secrecy (more infos) under the sorrows enacted by article 226-13 of the penal code: 3 legal decisions consolidate this interpretation of the common right. But the director of an agency of private research is also held with the secrecy by article 34 of the law Informatique and Freedoms to prevent that information being the subject of a data processing (reports/ratios, missions, emails…) is not deformed, is damaged or revealed with thirds not - authorized, hardly very strong penal sanctions, which obliges it, for example, with crypter the information transmitted to its customer by Internet.

One finds the obligation of the secrecy in other countries, as in Canada where, for example, the law of Manitoba on the detectives and investigators private prescribed: Except ace legally authorized gold required, No person shall divulge to anyone any information acquired by him ace has private investigator . (translation: No one cannot reveal with whoever information obtained within the framework of its functions of private investigator, except when the disclosure legally is authorized or required).

In Belgium article 10 of the law of July 19th, 1991 organizing the occupation of private detective prescribed: " the private detective can reveal with other people only with his customer, or those duly elected by him, information which it collected during the achievement of his mission"

But the professional secrecy is also imposed in Austria, generally in Canada, very as much as in Spain, in Finland, in Greece, in Italy, in Hungary, in Malta and the Netherlands.

Business cards

There exists, in France, no business card " officielle" for the investigators of private law: each agency, each trade union can create one of them provided, of course, that it does not present any resemblance to charts and official documents ( in particular those into force in the police services and of Gendarmerie ) because that would fall then under the blow from the criminal laws.

In general the business cards thus are established and delivered, in France, by the associative or trade-union professional organizations: one of them was used by Thierry Lhermitte in the film " a business privée" where he played the part of a private detective.

Under the empire of the old regulation, the Prefects delivered a receipt of declaration which the private agents presented in the event of control by a public service.

Since the new legislation the receipt of declaration was replaced by a delivered approval, in the name of the State, by the Administrative authority.

This approval is the order of the prefect object which the professionals in general carry on them to justify of their quality in the event of control by a police service and of Gendarmerie ( what one can include/understand if the investigator is in monitoring near a significant place for example ) or during their investigations.

In Switzerland, in the canton of Geneva, the Council of State delivers a business card with photography of the private detective whom it can introduce on request.

In Belgium and in Canada the detectives also have a professional indentity card which they can present to any requisition public authorities, customers or thirds.

Formations and diplomas

There exist - or existed - innumerable schools in the French-speaking countries to form with the occupation of private detective, of most serious with the least credible.

In Belgium the obligation of formation is imposed by article 3 (3°) of the law of July 19th, 1991 organizing the occupation of private detective who requires " to satisfy the conditions of formation and track records stopped by the King " .

In France the formation was made compulsory by article 102 of the law of March 18th, 2003 which, by creating a title II in the Law of July 12th, 1983 on the professions of safety, imposed a " professional qualification " for the branch managers and a " professional capacity " for the paid investigators.

The investigators who work for the only account of their employer (internal services of the banks, insurances, mutual insurance companies…) are not concerned with this regulation, but, on the other hand, a company which, under cover of another name (for example " Industrielle" intelligence; , or " Consultant" , even " Conseil" etc…) would proceed to investigations for the account of a customer would fall under the blow from the new legislation.

A decree of September 6th, 2005 fixed the conditions of these professional trainings, in particular the programs and the conditions under which the lesson will be able to give access to the profession.

Thus, starting from March 10th, 2007 for the private formations which do not exempt a diploma of State, it will be advisable to choose a formation registered ( to see following heading ) with the National directory of Professional Certifications ( if not it would not make it possible to exert nor to settle ).

Indeed, contrary to the titles delivered by private schools, the diplomas of State delivered by the Universities are registered, of right, with this National directory.

Then it is advisable to choose between public formation and formation deprived according to the wish as of the student and his objectives.

There exists a public formation proposing a diploma of State created by decree of the French Minister for State education, Research and higher education: the " professional license safety of the goods and the people, option investigations privées" created on June 21st, 2006 and opened to the students since September 2006.

This first diploma of State is delivered by the Université the Pantheon Assas Paris 2 (public corporation of higher education), in accordance with the new regulation, is registered (in level 2) with the National directory of Professional Certifications and its card n° 4883 can be consulted on the site of the National Commission of Professional Certifications (C.N.C.P.)

The access to a professional license, requires:

either the university level necessary (bac+2),

or a levelling by the means of validation of the professional assets or the assets of the experiment,

or still, for that delivered by the university Paris 2, possession of the diploma of university " of investigator privé" or of the Diploma of university of " director of investigations privées" ( subject corresponding, also, with the requirements of inscription to these professional Diplomas of establishment).

The diploma of State of private investigator constituted a first in France, created by the University the Pantheon Assas Paris 2, pionnière on the matter since 1998.
At least two other French Universities (of which the University of Nimes) seem from now on - 10 years after the partnership between PARIS 2 and Federation UFEDP - to be interested in this type of formation and of new public corporations could thus have to deliver a diploma of State as from the year 2008 or 2009.
There exists, also, of the French-speaking private schools which form, or were interested, in this activity, in France, in Belgium, in Switzerland and in French Canada.
They propose, according to the cases:

either a formation by correspondence,

or an continuing education,

or a formation by training course

or a continuing education

(according to whether the student wishes to follow or not the occupation, that he exert it already and wishes to supplement his knowledge, or that it wishes to exert in a French-speaking country).
In Canada there was a specific training with a school specialized in the training of the investigators deprived in suburbs of Montreal. The legislation imposes, in any event, a " formation" general practitioner:

a diploma of secondary studies is required.

a diploma of collegial studies in right and safety can be necessary.

a formation in the course of employment can be offered.

Of the experiment as police can be required security agents of company.

a provincial license is necessary private investigators.

Thus, " investigators privés" and the " investigating privées" ( French prefers the term of investigator ), the detectives of hotel and the detectives of store can follow formations suggested by:

the division of the further education of the Red River College offers a training program on safety (certificate advanced level).

the Northwest Law Enforcement Academy , establishment of private vocational training, offers a training program in right, protection and safety (certificate).

the Law Enforcement and Security Training Academy off Canada , establishment of private vocational training, offers the programs (certificates) following: Right, safety and protection, security agent level III, Safety and prevention of the losses in the retail business.

In right, always in Canada, the license of private detective is delivered by the " Commission of the licenses of private detectives and services of sécurité" named by the minister, who checks that the person, or that having to direct the agency, has the experiment and the formation' which, according to the Commission, are necessary to the exploitation of this agency. It is the same for the agents of the company.

In Switzerland there exists (2006/2007) a school forming with the occupation of private detective, the Professional I.F.P. Training institute NERO which for a sum of 4.625 Euros exempts courses in GENEVA but also in France with 34 MILL OF SAINT CHRISTOL (during 3 or 4 weeks).

In Belgium there exists, for example, a private institute which proposes a training of detective, including with sectoral courses for the insurance.

In France, the first trade-union school was the Training center of the Professional Employers' federation of the Private detectives.

Already during war 39-45 existed courses exempted by the E.I.D.E. (International School Expert Detectives).

Other formations or private schools created for themselves (and this list is not exhaustive) such as:

E.P.D.P. Vocational school Private detectives (Switzerland),

International Center of Police Studies (Belgium),

United European Detective Highschool (Belgium),

E.I.D.E. International school Expert Detectives (Belgium),

UNIECO (France),

Universal School (France),

CERPAC (France),

Normill School of detectives and Investigators (France),

Training center of " World Security" (France),

Educatel (France),

French School private detectives (France),

DIAMS Training formation detective (France)

Training institute Professional NERO (SWISS and France)

Training institute of the Agents of Research (France)

Universal Security Academy (France),

Association for the Professional training of the Private detectives (France)

Training institute of the Private Investigators (France)

National school of the Deprived Investigators with 02 St Quentin (France)

World Security (Provence area Dimensions Azure)

VIP' S limited liability company to 97 Saint Barthelemy,

etc… etc…

Certain agencies are also " centers of formation" declared near the prefectoral services ( management the work ).

It is in particular to put a term at sometimes whimsical deprived formations accompanied by diplomas without any value and an useless business card, that the profession turned to the Public authorities in order to obtain:

a regulation imposing a professional training

diplomas of University (the University Paris 2 created two of them)

a national title: it is the diploma of State created in June 2006.

In addition private reference frames of certifications can also exist to note particular competences for example in the field of the fraud to the insurances. A private certificate " investigator of assurances" , validates 3 years, is thus delivered by AFAQ AFNOR 116 avenue Aristide Briand 92224 BAGNEUX Certification on behalf of the insurers gathered within an association ESPARTO. Such a certificate, strictly deprived and which does not have a particular legal value, has simply as an aim to note competences of an investigator in a particular field.
Is Which the costs of a formation?

That depends, obviously, of the establishment concerned but, to give an idea we will quote some examples of current formations ( March 2007 ) which vary exemption from payment with… 4800 euros:

university a) public education:

University Paris 2: free teaching in initial training and only 2400€ in continuing education and for the employees (against 4165€ for example for a private school).

Paris 2 is a public corporation registered with the National directory of Professional Certifications and delivering, with the surplus, a diploma of State. The public service of teaching very advantageous for the young people, the employees and continuing education is financed while carrying the formation with 4800€ when the payment is directly assured by an financial institution - although this case is an exception - and by an enabling to levy the tax of training of the companies.

b) private educations

School NORMILL: approximately 1100 euros (private school by correspondence not registered with the R.N.C.P.)

IFAR: 4165 euros in continuing education (private school issuing a certificate of qualification, registered to the R.N.C.P.)

NERO: 4625 euros for a formation of 3 or 4 weeks (private school Swiss also giving courses in France but not registered to the RNCP)

National directory of Professional Certifications (France)

The National directory of Professional Certifications is a French service managed by the " National Commission of Professionnelles" Certifications; , consultable on Internet and under supervision of the Minister for the economy, finances and employment.

He has the aim of proposing with the public public or private professional trainings recognized by the State in order to direct the students towards serious lesson.

With regard to the University the Pantheon Assas Paris, public corporation of higher education, its professional license " investigations privées" is registered, in level II, with the National directory of Professional Certifications. Being a diploma of State, it has a European value and opens equivalences with public education (the " must" profession in France) .

The inscription in this university is thus a guarantee of value for the national diploma which it delivers in the name of the State.

On the other hand for the private schools it will be appropriate to check, before being registered, if the given training profits from a certification registered with the National directory and which level.

A private school obtained a certification of level III to give a training approved by the State. This private establishment had initially obtained an optional homologation, become, at the beginning of 2007 with the new standards of the C.N.C.P., qualification (of level III). The title which it delivers is not a diploma but a simple certification of professional qualification. Nevertheless its formation registered with the R.N.C.P. allows, the holders of its certificate, to follow the occupation contrary to the schools not certified by the R.N.C.P.

Currently of other certifications are under examination at the National Commission of Professional Certifications which took delay in the instruction of the files.

On the other hand it is obvious that it is useless to follow a " formation agréée" , therefore registered in this national directory, to exert apart from the French territory or to acquire knowledge for a strictly personal use.

Training courses

The training course in order to obtain the professional qualification to follow the occupation is subjected - in France - to an prior approval of the Prefect which has a two months deadline to give its agreement or to refuse it according to the investigation carried out by the police services and of the checks carried out near the legal authorities.

In the facts, taking into account the overload of the administrative services, it will be advisable to count a deadline from 2 to 6 even 8 months to obtain this authorization, from where need, for the students, to seek a long time in advance a Master of training course (or several).

Foot-note: the request for authorization to take a trainee is made by the Master of training course and not by the student near the administrative authority. This regulation relates to obviously only the French territory and is not applicable to the other French-speaking countries.

On the other hand, the training courses carried out by a student in the service of investigations of a bank, an insurance company, or a large company, is not prone to declaration nor control of the Prefect:

The Minister of Interior Department, indeed, specified with the Council of State that the investigation of morality

“concerns the people having to follow a practical training course in company, for purposes to protect as well the agencies from private research themselves as citizens (...)” ,

and he adds that:

“the investigation is not related to the access to an academic cycle or with a formation but only with the prospect for a training course having to be accomplished in an agency of private research, during which the trainee, if his morality is doubtful, will present an individual risk of breach of liberty protected by the penal code and the civil code, within the framework of the missions which would be entrusted to him. Thus it is not a question to inquire into the students according to a given teaching, but only to take guarantees in the two months preceding an inscription in training course”.

Jurisprudence: validity of the reports/ratios of private investigations

The law of March 18th, 2003 confirms the liberal character of the profession, defines this activity and validates the principle of the monitorings and spinning mills.

The value of the reports/ratios of private investigations depends, in fact, several factors according to the business: in law the labor, for example, legislative measures prohibit the employers from taking into account the controls carried out without the knowledge of the employees. Under these conditions a report/ratio of private investigator (like a report of usher or any other proof collected without the knowledge of the employee) would be rejected as being illicit, but judicial apparatuses make it possible to circumvent, legally, these provisions to justify, even in law the labor, the sasine of a private investigator.

On the other hand, in civil law, in commercial law, criminal law the proof is free and can be paid by all means and in these fields testimonys and depositions of agents of private research are regularly produced and often taken into account by the Courts under certain legal conditions.

Thus, in civil law, since a stop " GARNIER" going back to November 7th, 1962, the Court of appeal (FRANCE) recognized already, in theory, the validity of the reports/ratios and testimonys of investigators deprived under the reserves required by the law (legality of the mission, legitimacy of the proof, identification of the investigator, absence of animosity, character detailed, precise and given full details report/ratio).

On this point jurisprudence is constant but too bulky to be paid on a service which does not have a legal vocation but simply to present the profession.

Let us quote, simply, a stop of Court of Appeal which summarizes perfectly the situation and the legal evolution on the taking into account of the reports/ratios of private investigations:

“ the observations carried out (...) are acceptable in justice according to the same methods and under the same reserves as any other mode of proof (...) ”.

It is besides this evolution of this profession towards a legal activity and the search for evidence for civil procedures or commercial, which decided the legislator to regulate it.

The " moralisation" and the " professionnalisation" private investigators can only guarantee, also, the value of the testimonys produced in justice and facilitate their taking into account left with the appreciation of the magistrates.

As pointed out it the French Minister of Interior Department, in a written answer published to the Official journal: " … being the contribution of the agents of research deprived to the manifestation of the truth within the framework of the legal actions, it is already permissible with justiciable to produce a report/ratio of agent of research deprived in front of the judge, who remains free to appreciate the value probante" of it; .

Relationship between Police force and Detectives

A legend would like that there exists a " collusion" between the private police services and investigators.

This amalgam results primarily owing to the fact that former gendarmerie and police officers open an agency at the time of their retirement.

In addition, before the reform (France) of the divorce of 1975 the reports were carried out by the police services because the inaccuracy was, at the time, a penal offense.

That thus involved, obligatorily, of the contacts for the realization of the recording of adultery with the police service indicated by the judge.

Since the reports are drawn up by the Bailiffs and these contacts thus do not exist any more.

The profession sometimes, also in the past, summer regarded as a " parapolice " , a " concurrent " official services, myth which results from the image of the detectives reflected by the black novels, the television serials and the police cinema…

That they are the novels of " Chandler" , with its detectives " cow-boy " surrounded by pretty blondes, who drive convertible, the " Smith and Wesson" within reach…, while passing through Nestor Burma, Hercule Poirot or Sherlock Holmes, the private detective " virtuel" deal with criminal cases and, of course, always manages to find the culprits when the Police force is held in failure…

This myth, strongly anchored in the spirit of the public ( the force of television is undoubtedly not foreign there ) does not correspond at all to French realities, in a country which is posted like the defender of fundamental freedoms.

What of it is it then differences between the police force and the detectives? To make simple the first intervene within the framework of the penal procedures , the second in that of the civil procedures and commercial , two fields which do not overlap and for which the French Republic does not place the same means at the disposals of the justiciable ones.

To summarize, the National police force, the Municipal police, the National police, the customs treat the businesses which constitute the penal offenses (or administrative) sanctioned by sorrows of fine and/or prison: these services defend the interests of the Company.

the private detectives and investigators, for their part, intervene within the framework of the private affairs, professional, civil and commercial, i.e. in fields which do not concern the competence of the official services: they defend of the private interests.

Indeed - and extremely fortunately for the private life of our fellow-citizens - the Police force does not have quality and thus does not have not the right to intervene within the framework of these civil cases and commercial, which is a good for our individual freedoms and makes it possible to have the insurance that the private life, the health issues, the professional life, the family life, finances, businesses, and the life intimates will not be " fichés" in the police administrations.

In addition there does not exist examining magistrate, in civil procedure and commercial, to carry out surveys as in penal procedure ( the civil judge being a simple referee which slices according to the elements and of the evidence brought by the parts).

The role of the investigators of private law is thus to seek, establish and fix the evidence necessary for the lawyers and the litigants in these fields, while bringing the guarantee of the professional secrecy and that the professional will devote himself to research intended to defend the interests of the applicant.

Do the detectives never intervene they in the penal field?

That can arrive, but in circumstances which make that, there still, the role of the police services is finished, or that they are not seized yet by it.

Thus as regards swindle with the insurances, the private investigator will be seized by a company for purposes to determine - before the deposit of a complaint - if the insurer has, or not be victim of this offense, because any unfounded lodge of a complaint could involve its judgment for " denunciation calomnieuse".

If the private investigation makes it possible to conclude with a fraud, the insurer will deposit felt sorry for and, but then only, the police services will take over, the private investigator being erased.

Within the framework of " counter-enquiries pénales" the private investigator will act, after a judgment (or once the official instruction completed) to check the elements, to seek the new ones which would make it possible to clear a defendant or to obtain a revision of the lawsuit.

There still, the police services did not have to intervene any more their mission being completed.

There cannot thus be least confusion between official services and private investigators who intervene in completely distinct fields.

The quibbles consisting in putting in competition the Police force and the Detectives thus raise of a total ignorance of the profession, even indicates an complete absence of legal formation to confuse penal procedure with the civil procedures or commercial.

Is Which the current relationship between the Police force and the Detectives?

There did not exist institutional relationship between the official services of Police force and Gendarmerie until the intervention of the law of March 18th, 2003 which places the agencies of research deprived under the monitoring, on behalf of the administrative authority, of the Police superintendents and the Officers of the National police.

It had certainly been preferable that the profession, once regulated, is placed under the supervision of the Prefect and Public prosecutor not following the example legal experts or general agents of insurance since it is about an auxiliary activity of the legal professions and not auxiliary of police force.

However these controls of the administrative authority at all do not authorize the police services and of gendarmerie to take note of the treated files or the identity of the customers.

In fact the relations between the official services and the profession are those of any other citizen: those of simple a " témoin" on businesses that the private investigator could treat and which are included within the framework of a penal procedure.

Thus, for example, as regards counterfeit or fraud to the insurances, " privés" can communicate, at the request of a customer and in the capacity as representative of the plaintiff, additional details on the treated files which necessarily do not appear in the transmitted reports, and this, in order to facilitate the official investigation.

Missions of the private investigator

The activity, in France, has nothing to do with the " mythe" profession developed by the black novels, the police cinema and the television serials as shown above.

The private investigator is, in France, a true auxiliary of the companies and legal professions with the research center of evidence and legitimate information.

The investigator or private detective can, today, intervene within the framework of very many files such as:

family conflicts ( adultery, problems with the minors …),
professional litigations ( practical unfair )
economic litigations ( prevention of the commercial risks, study of a company and its leaders )
financial litigations ( research on debtors, solvency )
litigations of insurances ( circumstances of disasters, seeks of a victim or of its heirs to pour allowances, real damage controls…).

It can intervene, before sasine of the official services, to seek the pieces of evidence of an penal offense which will make it possible to the customer to deposit felt sorry for without risk of continuations for libelous denunciation ( for example in the event of suspicions of frauds to the insurances ), or to identify counterfeits.

Very incidentally, after a judgment, it can seek new elements to allow a revision of the lawsuit or a call (“against criminal investigation ”).

These some examples are obviously not exhaustive and one will quote, for memory, the activity of the profession which, for the article 1st of the Belgian law of July 19th, 1991, specifies that it has as an aim of:

to seek missing people or lost or stolen goods;

to collect relative informations with the civil statue, control, the morality and the solvency of people;

to join together pieces of evidence or to note facts which give or can give place to conflicts between people or which can be used to put an end to these conflicts;

to seek activities of industrial espionage;

to carry on any other activity defined by a royal decree deliberated in the Council of Ministers.

(See higher, in heading " réglementation" , the definition given by the French legislation).

Future of the profession in France

We saw that the investigator intervenes in civil law and commercial within the framework of many litigations which do not concern the official services of police force and gendarmerie.

In addition the legal expert, named by the judge, can intervene only to establish the responsibilities and to fix the amount of a damage, and the Bailiff, under the terms of an ordinance of 1945 which regulates this profession, can proceed only to purely material observations and cannot carry out investigations. And as there does not exist, in civil procedure, of examining magistrate charged with diligenter the investigations for research with the evidence, there thus remains only one activity, in our country, to seek, establish and fix the proof of facts of which could depend the solution on a litigation: the investigator or private detective.

Some, which remain very rare, start to be indicated by the Courts to take a measurement of instruction.

It is here probably that the future of the profession is: the possibility for certain investigators (having a good legal formation) , to intervene on behalf of the judge, and becoming, thus, of true auxiliaries of justice.

This procedure would have indeed the merit to make control the mission by justice, guarantor of individual freedoms and fundamental, to supplement the shortcomings in the civil procedure where there do not exist legal professions charged to carry out investigations, to control the work of the technician, to guarantee his impartiality and to fix, judicially, the amount of its expenses and fees.

The company, freedoms, the justiciable ones and the profession could only there find interest.

Relations between the profession and lawyers

The relations between the detectives and lawyers, like generally with the auxiliaries of justice, are excellent because the investigator, since always, is their direct auxiliary.

Of course there can be some " exceptions" who, by ignorance of the profession - such as it from now on is regulated and exerted - can fear abuses ( whose one cannot deny the last existence ) but the legislator intervened to bring to them Draconian guarantees of standing and professionalisation.

The private detectives and investigators are, today, one of the most regulated professions, the most controlled, most supervised. ( even the monetary Code and financier included provisions with regard to them preventing their takeover by foreign companies! ).

Following disastrous the Affaire of Outreau ( in which the innocent ones were imprisoned before being released and that them innocence is established ) the Bar of Paris wished that it be given to lawyers the possibility of leading private investigations, proof of the need for being able to call upon the profession.

But already the general meeting of the National council of the Bars had wished, in a report/ratio - since 1997 - which the lawyers can call upon a " private agent of recherches" , and even as the fees can be dealt with by the legal aid ( jurisdictional assistance ).

It is thus noted that the relationship between private lawyers and investigators is excellent since the occupation is followed seriously.

Professional organization

There does not exist any institutional organization, of ordinal type, in this profession and the French government does not have any intention to create some, contrary to the eccentric rumors which circulate here or there.

In a development published in the Journal officiel de la R3epublique fran1caise of October 3rd, 2006, the Government held has to specify that the creation of a " professional Order " the occupation of detective was useless being sufficiently framed:

" The law n° 83-629 of July 12th, 1983 regulating the private activities of safety modified by law 2003-239 of March 18th, 2003 for the internal security frames the exercise of the activity of agent of private research. It defines it as being “the liberal profession which consists, for a person, to collect, even without making state of its quality nor reveal the object of its mission, of the information or information intended for thirds, for the defense of their interests”. Article 22 of the law subjects its exercise to a preliminary approval, which, according to the provisions of its 7th subparagraph, is subordinated to the detention of “a professional qualification defined by decree in Council of State”. This activity being thus sufficiently framed, the creation of a professional Ordre does not appear necessary. The agent of private research carries on its activity for the defense of the interests of third, within the framework of the common right, and in particular of the provisions of the penal code and the code of procedure pénale" .

Consequently all the professional organizations ( without any exception ) are private organizations, stripped of all privileges, prerogatives and capacities of public power which do not have any control on the members of the profession ( apart from their own members ), the discipline, the deontology.

However all the trade unions can make known an opinion on the problems relating to the profession and to constitute civil part when the general interests of the activity are in question, and this in accordance with the general rights of the trade unions registered in the Labor regulation.

Associations law of 1901, for their part, cannot represent the general interests of the profession but only their members.

This position of the Government is easily comprehensible besides since the formation, standing, and the conditions of exercise are placed under the control of the prefect, that the police superintendents and the officers of the national police ensure, on behalf of the administrative authority, the monitoring of the agencies, that ethics is controlled by a new independent administrative authority (National ethics commission of Safety) and that finally the trade unions can be consulted or to constitute civil part when the interests of the profession are in question!

Under these conditions the creation of a " Professionnel" order; would be useless, and would be used with anything else only to create an unbearable additional taxation to cover the expenses with them.

See too

To get information

FRANCE: Information center on the private Detectives and Investigators

University the Pantheon Assas Paris II Public Formation University (diploma of French State of European value)

private Certification Investigators of insurances AFNOR.

BELGIUM: Professional association of the detectives of Belgian insurances

It is also possible to get information near the many associative or trade-union organizations of the profession in each French-speaking country.

Stereotype of the private detective

Always in the context of the Anglo-Saxon fictions, the recourse to the investigation of a placed this figure of scenario in the regitre of the Archétype of the private safety of the people.

Detective novel, with a list of the principal private detectives or institutional of the Literature.
Investigating of insurances
Investigating of private private law
Investigating of Businesses
Investigating
Investigation of police force

Random links: