Professional Ethics, Conduct, and Scope of Authority of a Licensed Investigator
The license is a permission, not a power
A Tennessee private investigator is a private citizen holding a business license. The license authorizes investigating for hire; it confers no arrest power, no detention authority, no search authority, no access to law-enforcement databases, and no right to carry a badge or wear anything resembling a law enforcement uniform. Impersonating an officer, or implying law enforcement authority, is criminal and separately a ground for discipline.
Core duties
- Fiduciary loyalty and confidentiality: work only for the client, report honestly even when the finding disappoints, and protect case information.
- Truthfulness everywhere - applications, testimony, reports, advertising, and dealings with the Commission. Discipline frequently follows the cover-up rather than the original error.
- Competence and scope: decline work beyond your training; do not give legal advice or act as the client's attorney.
- No fee splitting or kickbacks with unlicensed referral sources, and no compensation contingent on producing a particular finding.
The pretext line
Investigators may use lawful cover in conversation, but may not claim to be police, a government official, or the subject's lawyer or doctor; obtain financial records by false pretenses (federal pretexting law); obtain driver or vehicle records without a permissible purpose (DPPA); or access computers, phones, and accounts without authorization.
Reporting and self-reporting
Rules require prompt notice of the changes the Commission relies on - address and business changes, criminal charges or convictions, and discipline in another jurisdiction - plus renewal and continuing education. Silence is itself a violation.
Worked example: A client asks you to call a bank, say you are the subject's accountant, and obtain statements. Refuse: that is pretexting under federal law, it is a crime, and it would taint the case. Offer the lawful route - a subpoena through the client's attorney, or a client-authorized release.
Rule of thumb: if a technique only works because the other person believes you are someone you are not, stop.