About the CLI Exam

There are three parts to the Certified Legal Investigator exam. Candidates must successfully complete each section. Should the candidate fail one or more sections of the CLI test, the candidate must re-take and pass any failed section in order to obtain the CLI designation. It is not necessary to re-take any section that has been passed. The candidate must successfully complete all portions of the exam within three years of the date the candidate first takes the exam.

1. THE CLI “WHITE PAPER”

The white paper must be an originally authored and unpublished paper of not less than 1,000 words written by the CLI applicant, specifically for the CLI examination. It may be written on any investigative subject but is not to be a rehash of an investigated case. For examples of white papers, see past issues of The Legal Investigator, the official publication of the National Association of Legal Investigators, Inc.

The white paper should be written in an article or thesis-style format. It must be submitted by email, as an attachment, and sent to the CLI Chairperson no later than 30 days before the exam. The CLI Committee may determine that the paper needs editing or additional material. In such cases, the paper will be returned to the candidate for any changes. As long as the original paper is submitted at least 30 days before the exam, it will be considered to have been submitted by the deadline. Candidates are encouraged to work with the CLI Committee when considering topics at any time before the deadline.

References cited (if used) in the paper must be either footnoted and/or listed in a bibliography attached to the white paper. If the white paper is based on the investigator’s own personal knowledge and/or his or her experience working the field using no reference materials or publications, a bibliography and footnotes are not necessary. However, a white paper without footnotes and/or bibliography must contain a simple signed, written notation (on a separate page) that the white paper is based on personal knowledge and/or experience and is an independent work of the author.

The National Association of Legal Investigators, Inc. reserves the right to publish the white paper in its official journal, The Legal Investigator, and/or distribute it to its membership through any other reasonable means which it deems appropriate.

2. THE CLI WRITTEN EXAMINATION

The written test format includes definitions, true/false, multiple choice, fill-in-the-blank, matching and essay questions. The written exam has a three-hour time limit and is conducted with at least one CLI proctor. Written examination questions are derived from the following sources:

  • The CLI Committee recommended reading list
  • Articles published in The Legal Investigator
  • General information the CLI Committee Chair has deemed should be known by a legal investigator

3. THE CLI ETHICS AND ORAL EXAMINATION

Candidates will be given a mock investigative assignment. The candidate may choose a criminal defense or civil scenario. The candidate will interview a purported witness and obtain his/her handwritten statement within a prescribed amount of time. The candidate will prepare a memo of the interview. This is followed by an oral/ethics examination. All testing is proctored only by Certified Legal Investigators and members of the CLI Committee. Detailed instructions will be provided to the candidate at the start of this portion of the exam.

The entire CLI ethics and oral examination section takes approximately three hours and includes the interview, statement, memo, ethical questions, and other questions deemed appropriate by the proctors.

RECOMMENDED CLI STUDY MATERIALS

The CLI Committee recommends the following publications for study on investigation techniques and procedures:

Code of Professional Conduct (2006 ed.)
Kitty Hailey, CLI
Lawyers and Judges Publishing Company
PO Box 30040
Tucson, AZ 85751
(800) 209-7109
www.lawyersandjudges.com

Criminal Investigation for the Professional Investigator
Warren J. Sonne, CLI
CRC Press
270 Madison Avenue
New York, NY 10016
(917) 351-7100
www.crcpress.com

The Legal Investigator

“The Official Journal of NALI”
Editor, National Association of Legal Investigators, Inc.
www.nalionline.org

Practical Handbook for Professional Investigators, 3rd Edition
Rory J. McMahon, CLI, CFE
CRC Press
270 Madison Avenue
New York, NY 10016
(917) 351-7100
www.crcpress.com

Techniques of Legal Investigation (3rd ed.)
Anthony M. Golec, CLI
Charles C. Thomas—Publisher, LTD
2600 South First Street
Springfield, IL 62717
(800) 258-8980
www.crcpress.com

Practical Methods For Legal Investigations
Dean Beers, CLI
CRC Press
New York, NY 10016
(917) 351-7100
www.crcpress.com

ADDITIONAL READING

These are books that are recommended for every investigator but will not necessarily be the basis of any questions used directly in the testing process. Concepts and ideas from the books may be used in answering questions.

Advanced Forensic Civil Investigations
Compiled by Paul J. Ciolino, CFE
Lawyers & Judges Publishing Company, Inc.
P.O. Box 30040-AJ
Tucson, AZ 85751-0040
(800) 209-7109
www.lawyersandjudges.com

Fundamentals of Criminal Investigation (6th ed.)
Charles E. O’Hara and Gregory L. O’Hara
Charles C. Thomas—Publisher, LTD
2600 South First Street
Springfield, IL 62717
(800) 258-8980
www.ccthomas.com

The Professional Investigator
Kitty Hailey, CLI
211 South Street # 355
Philadelphia, PA19147
215-574-8127
www.kittyhailey.com

* Black’s Law Dictionary
Should be considered as another source for explanation of legal terms found in above publications.
http://west.thomson.com

Contact Information​​

Janiece Lee, CLI, NALI CLI Chairperson
Lee Investigative Services, LLC
9160 U.S. Hwy 64, Ste. 12-114
Lakeland, TN 38002
Phone: 901-356-0770
Jlee@lismemphis.com

Click here to Apply to be a CLI