A major U.S. corporation was considering a joint venture with a privately owned financial services company. Interfor was retained to do a due-diligence investigation of the owners of the prospective J.V. partner. The investigation uncovered a 20-year history of litigation, involving allegations of fraud, negligence, misrepresentation, breach of contract, unfair business practices, civil RICO violations, deceit, conspiracy, and breach of fiduciary duty. Interfor provided the client with the long-term history of troubled relationships and clouded ethics that induced them to adjust the terms of the relationship to better protect their interests. Small and medium-sized firms often hit foreign obstacles in billing overseas.
Exporters often fail to investigate credit.
Before shipping the goods, the company had failed to check the customer's credit references. Interfor determined that the credit references were fictitious, and the company nonexistent. The subject was a U.S. citizen previously from Canada. Investigation in Canada and the U.S. revealed a string of personal and corporate bankruptcies in Canada, perjury in two U.S. depositions, misrepresentation in the personal bankruptcy filing and a reputation for failure to perform on contracts. The client company discontinued joint venture plans.