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Make Criminal Defense Investigations Training a Breeze.

Equip your office with the skills to conduct strategic, more thorough investigations—uncovering critical case information and strengthening your team’s ability to support clients—all while saving hundreds of in-house training hours.

With the game-changing course, your team gains consistent, high-quality training, giving them the confidence and expertise to build stronger defenses, improve case outcomes, and work more effectively.

 

We Know What It’s Like to Train Defense Investigators, Paralegals, and Attorneys In-House

  • You want your team to be highly skilled, but training them in Backgrounds, Records, and Case Research takes time—time you don’t have.
  • You don’t have a structured, standardized training program—so everyone learns through trial and error, leading to inconsistency.
  • Your senior investigators, paralegals, and attorneys are already overloaded, leaving little bandwidth to train new hires properly.
  • Your office hasn’t been able to find a single, consistent, comprehensive resource—just scattered information, leaving gaps in knowledge that impact cases.
  • Your paralegals and legal assistants haven’t really received formal training specific to records, backgrounds, and case research—leading to inefficiencies and missed opportunities.
  • You find conferences to assist with training, but they can be disappointing, rarely offering investigator-specific training. This means that non-attorney staff sit through sessions meant for attorneys, with few to no practical takeaways.
  • You need confident and efficient investigators who don’t second-guess themselves or drop the ball because they didn’t receive proper instruction.
  • You know that mistakes can be costly, affecting defense strategy, trial preparation, and ultimately, clients’ lives.

Introducing Advanced Backgrounds, Records and Case Research

This comprehensive course teaches everything from A to Z on the topic. No more piecing information together from multiple sources. It’s been written specifically for criminal defense investigators, paralegals, attorneys, legal assistants and basically anyone involved in Public Defense. The information is tailored for investigative purposes and touches on the topics relevant to this field.

Strengthen your commitment to a more just criminal legal system by elevating the quality of your staff’s investigation skills.

This course saves your office time, effort, and uncertainty, so your staff can focus on what matters most: defending your clients.

  • Consistently uncover critical evidence that could mean the difference between a strong defense and a wrongful conviction—leading to better case outcomes.
  • Ensure that everyone receives the same, high-quality training. Save your office hundreds of hours of in-house training, and use that time to help your clients!
  • Level the playing field by equipping your staff with the same high-level training and resources as prosecutorial investigators.
  • Give your team access to expert-led, comprehensive instruction that leaves no gaps - no more piecing training together in between case deadlines.
  • Avoid wasting precious time and resources chasing dead ends or duplicating efforts. 
  • Tackle tough cases with confidence and clarity, using proven, best-practice methods so that information is ethically obtained and usable in court.
  • Train your attorneys in investigative techniques to better lead their teams, ask the right questions, and use records and research more effectively in their defense strategy.


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What’s in the Course?

No need to reinvent the wheel. We have organized information on all areas of background investigations, criminal history searches, social media and internet reconnaissance that you could possibly need. Here’s our syllabus.

Obtaining a Background

Delve into backgrounds—what they are and why they’re essential, interpret background database reports and transform raw data into actionable insights. Learn how to positively identify your subject and avoid gathering intel on the wrong person.

Locating a Witness

Explore the myriad ways of finding subjects and honing in on their most likely location before driving to the wrong address.

Criminal History 
Investigation 

Discover the best hacks for finding and requesting court records and gathering criminal histories that tell a story. Whether it helps or hurts your case, having the complete picture gets you ready for whatever comes next.

Collecting Records

Here, our comprehensive record collection guide will help you know what records exist, the difference between public and private records, and how to make airtight requests using our ready-to-use templates. We also cover strategies to avoid potential landmines—you’ll thank us later.

Internet Reconnaissance

Learn about the wealth of Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) that is available at your fingertips to help with your case research—without the fruitless Google searches.

Social Media Reconnaissance

Make the best possible use of this gold mine for investigators, while navigating the murky waters of online ethics safely.

Subject Analysis

Bring all the facts about a subject together into a cohesive profile to give the defense team a clear understanding of the person and their story, to help build a compelling case.

Here’s What You Get With the Course

No more piecing together training or pulling senior staff away from casework—this course handles it all while giving your team the skills and confidence they need to perform at their best.

  • 13 Hours of expert-led training. Your staff gets structured, in-depth instruction without disrupting their workload.
  • Upon successful completion, your staff will earn the Expert Method Background Certified Investigator credential—boosting their credibility, expertise, and confidence.
  • Case-based training that helps you to learn while seeing how the theory is applied practically, and avoids costly real-life mistakes.
  • Ready-to-use templates and work product examples to streamline your investigations.
  • Downloadable PDF guides that you can refer to time and time again.
  • Accessible online, anytime, anywhere so you can learn at your own pace and minimize disruptions.
  • CE credits (depending on your state).
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What Our Students Are Saying…

Jasmin Jones, Aspiring Investigator

“Coming from outside of the field, I now feel like I could really do this. I’ll be referring back to these resources for a while! The course is so thorough and well-designed; a question would come up for me and then would immediately be answered on the next screen. It was easy to stay engaged because the model case we went through was super realistic and interesting. I researched so many resources, and no other course, blogger, or YouTuber offers anything that comes close. These aren’t book skills. It’s really clear that something like this could only be taught by someone with years and years of experience in the field.  The Investigative Method is the most well-designed, comprehensive course out there.”

Martin de Bourmont, Federal Defender Investigator

“This program models the painstaking work that goes into preparing to launch a criminal defense investigation by emphasizing patience, critical-thinking, records analysis, and the importance of preparation before hitting the field. Furthermore, it provides a comprehensive list of all the avenues through which an investigator can begin generating leads before going out to knock on doors. One way it does so is by providing an exhaustive list of OSINT tools that will arm an investigator with everything they need to find and efficiently interview fact witnesses. Another invaluable benefit of this course is the way it demystifies records requests, helping an investigator understand where they can find important documents, what is publicly available, what requires a subpoena, and what could necessitate a court order. By putting all of these lessons in the context of a case in progress, the investigator learns in a hands-on way that favors retention and understanding. I cannot recommend this program highly enough.”

Megan, Federal Defender Paralegal

“I loved the PDFs and links to outside sources (I may have even saved a few to use in my work :) ) The examples of real spreadsheets and memos to submit to attorneys are fantastic. I think this course will give people the confidence to go out and do the job.

Overall, I think it's a great course for a new investigator, especially if I could go back to review sections after I completed the course. I loved the PDFs and links to outside sources (I may have even saved a few to use in my work :) ) The examples of real spreadsheets and memos to submit to attorneys are fantastic. I think this course will give people the confidence to go out and do the job.”

Who Will You Learn With?

This course has been developed by Amber Kaset and her growing team at AK Investigations.

Amber founded AK Investigations in 2010, after seven years at the Metropolitan Public Defender in Nashville, where she worked as a criminal defense investigator and interpreter. She knows and understands the Public Defender Investigator experience intimately, which is a big reason why she created the Investigative Expert Method. Amber’s agency began as a one-woman operation in Nashville, TN, and has since grown to a team of multiple investigators with diverse skills and specialties. 

Amber and her team provide investigative services, training, and consulting nationwide, assisting defense teams and investigators in elevating their practice. They have handled over 1,000 cases, including high-profile white-collar crimes and civil lawsuits, hundreds of murders, and over thirty death penalty cases across multiple states. They are dedicated to providing thoughtful, high-quality support tailored to the unique needs of each case, regardless of its complexity or the client's circumstances.

All of this means that this course gives you the benefit of more than a thousand cases’ worth of experience, fast-tracking your staff’s journey to success.

Pricing Options

Special Limited Time Offer

$599 per seat

$300 OFF for our first 25 learners.

  • Access the full course and bonus downloads
  • Get the Expert Method Background Certified Investigator certificate.
  • Display our digital badge on your LinkedIn profile.
  • Enjoy ONE YEAR of unlimited, anytime access!
  • Become an Expert Method Early Adopter and enjoy perks like early bird access and exclusive discounts on future courses!
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Individual* special rate for staff at Public Defenders’ Offices & Non-Profits

$699 per seat

  • Access the full course and bonus downloads
  • Get the Expert Method Background Certified Investigator certificate.
  • Display our digital badge on your LinkedIn profile.
  • Enjoy ONE YEAR of unlimited, anytime access!
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Bulk discount for organizations

5-10 seats - $649
11-29 seats - $599
30 plus seats* $549

Costs listed are per seat.

  • Access the full course and bonus downloads
  • Get the Expert Method Background Certified Investigator certificate.
  • Display our digital badge on your LinkedIn profile.
  • Enjoy ONE YEAR of unlimited, anytime access!

*Pricing at this tier includes a Customized Investigation Strategy Consultation - a collaborative remote consultation where you set the agenda. Choose to delve deeper into our course content, refine your investigative structures and plans, or explore case-specific consultations—whatever best meets your office's needs. Leveraging our extensive experience in both government agencies and the private sector, we work closely with you to streamline investigations, optimize resources, and develop customized strategies that drive success.

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*Installment payment options are available upon checkout.

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We offer reduced rates for individuals and bulk seat purchases.
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

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Pay only $599! Offer valid for a limited time. 

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This Is a Golden Opportunity to Level the Playing Field. Don’t Miss It.

Prosecutors have well-trained investigators—your team deserves the same advantage. This training allows you to easily equip your staff with consistent, high-level instruction in best practices, and the most effective investigative techniques. 


This comprehensive training ensures that everyone is on the same page, covering everything they need to know. No more piecemeal training or wasted time—equip your team efficiently, free up senior staff, and strengthen your defense. Smarter investigations mean better outcomes.

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Refund Policy

We do not offer refunds on our course due to the immediate access provided to all course materials, including proprietary resources and certifications.  Our course is a comprehensive investment in your professional development, offering in-depth training, industry-recognized certification, and practical tools you can apply immediately. We stand by the quality of our content and encourage you to reach out with any questions before purchasing to ensure it’s the right fit for your needs.