Bearden Investigative Agency was founded more than 40 years ago by Jim Bearden, who left the government intelligence field to establish his own company. His son, Wes Bearden, worked alongside his father for many years and is now the company’s chairman and CEO. The company sold its large security division to a multinational corporation in 1991 and refocused its mission on being an attorney-led, full-service investigative agency that provides high-quality work with trusted results.

Our agency has worked in all 50 states and some 42 countries and has offices in Dallas, Houston, New Orleans, and New York. We have represented thousands of individuals and attorneys, hundreds of corporations and numerous federal, state and local governmental entities – each with a unique problem. Our clients have included:

• Two U.S. presidents
• Six U.S. senators
• Seven governors
• Two royal families
• Three monarchs
• Twelve billionaires
• Dozens of Fortune 500 corporations
• Numerous officials, sports figures and celebrities

Our Cases

Our experience, resources and relationships are unrivaled in the profession, and our extensive case history has included many complicated and high-profile cases such as:

• Watergate investigation
• The Brilab Case
• FBI sting operations known as Abscam
• Cullen Davis criminal defense cases
• Atlanta child murders
• Delta Flight 191 crash at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport
• (Retired) Dallas Cowboys player Michael Irvin’s criminal cases
• Pennzoil v. Texaco
• The Lipstick Murders
• The Sharpstown Scandal
• Henry Lee Lucas Mass Murders
• MGM Grand Hotel fire in Nevada

Additionally, we have worked on more than a dozen murder cases involving organized crime, 59 capital murder investigations, contentious divorce and child custody cases and sensitive issues on political campaigns. We have handled a wide-range of business cases, including pre-acquisition due diligence, in-depth background investigations and corporate litigation defense development.

Our agency has a deep history of solving tough cases efficiently and ethically.

Our Founder

Jim Bearden founded Bearden Investigative Agency in 1972, served as its CEO and chairman and was closely involved in some of the most famous criminal and civil cases of the last 30 years.

A licensed attorney, Jim was a member of numerous bar associations, represented many commercial customers, held equity positions in various companies and served in leadership roles with several groups, including as chairman and president of the Texas State Museum of History.

During his lifetime, he received many awards and honors, including the Hudgins Salle Award in 2010, the Texas Association of Licensed Investigators’ top honor. Jim passed away in 2012, but his legacy lives on through the agency he founded more than 40 years ago.