Washington All-Party

Licensing & Regulation

Washington licenses PIs through the Department of Licensing under RCW 18.165. Applicants must be 18+, U.S. citizens or legal residents, complete pre-assignment training, submit fingerprints, post a $10,000 surety bond, and carry $25,000 in liability insurance. Agency licensure requires 5,000 hours of qualifying experience.

Physical Surveillance

Public surveillance is permitted. Washington has strong privacy protections under the state constitution Article I §7 (interpreted to apply primarily to government action but informing tort law). GPS tracking on a non-owned vehicle is constrained by stalking statutes.

Audio & Video Recording Consent

Washington is an all-party-consent state under RCW 9.73.030 (the Privacy Act). Every party to a private communication must consent. The Washington Supreme Court in State v. Townsend and subsequent cases has applied the statute broadly. Penalties include criminal misdemeanor and civil damages.

Domestic, Marital & Infidelity Investigations

Washington is a community-property state with no-fault divorce. Marital misconduct rarely affects property division. PIs document patterns. Recording is constrained by the all-party-consent statute.

Cybersecurity, Hacking & Digital Investigations

RCW 9A.90.040 et seq. (Washington Cybercrime Act) is broad. OSINT is permitted; pretexting is barred. Washington has the My Health My Data Act for health-related privacy.

Missing Persons, Skip Tracing & Harassment

Washington State Patrol coordinates missing-persons cases. DPPA fully applies. RCW 9A.46.110 (stalking) is broad.