AM Forensics vs LexisNexis Diligence
LexisNexis provides due-diligence research tooling built on its news, legal, and public-records archives, letting compliance teams run adverse-media, sanctions, and background searches from a single platform.
/ How each is bought
The clearest difference is usually not features. It is what you are actually buying, who performs it, and what you own at the end.
AM Forensics
- Engagement
- Per-subject or per-matter engagement
- Pricing
- Fixed price and turnaround quoted at scoping
- Who does the work
- Named investigator, start to finish
- Independence
- Independent — no data-licensing revenue, no referral fees
LexisNexis Diligence
- Engagement
- Database subscription
- Pricing
- Seat and search-volume based
- Who does the work
- Your team runs and interprets searches
- Independence
- Data vendor
/ Side by side
These rows describe how each firm operates — facts you can verify — rather than judgments about product quality. Where a flat yes or no would mislead, the cell says so.
| Capability | AM Forensics | LexisNexis Diligence |
|---|---|---|
| Named investigator does the workNo handoff to an offshore research pool. | ✓Yes | −No |
| Every finding tied to a cited sourceReports footnote the record behind each assertion. | ✓Yes | ✓Yes |
| Primary public and corporate recordsFilings, courts, registries — not database aggregation alone. | ✓Yes | ~PartlyStrong archived content; live registry and court retrieval is a separate exercise. |
| Metadata and digital-artifact analysisDocument provenance, EXIF, file-history examination. | ✓Yes | −No |
| Fixed price quoted before work beginsScope and cost agreed in writing, not billed open-ended. | ✓Yes | ~Partly |
| Report structured for counsel and courtWritten anticipating challenge and privilege. | ✓Yes | −NoReturns results, not a report. |
| Single-subject engagements acceptedNo annual contract or subscription minimum. | ✓Yes | −No |
| AML and financial-crime contextFindings interpreted against BSA/AML expectations. | ✓Yes | ~Partly |
| Named turnaround commitmentA date, agreed at scoping. | ✓Yes | ✓Yes |
/ Where LexisNexis Diligence is the better call
We would rather you buy the right thing than buy from us. Here is where LexisNexis Diligence genuinely wins.
LexisNexis Diligence does this well
- Unmatched depth of archived news and legal content
- Long historical coverage that surfaces older adverse media
- Familiar, defensible source with regulators and auditors
Best for: Compliance teams running regular adverse-media and background searches in volume.
Where teams still come to us
- Search output is raw; someone still has to resolve false positives and write the conclusion.
- Common names generate substantial noise that the platform will not clear for you.
- No metadata, artifact, or structural analysis.
- Occasional users pay subscription economics for episodic need.
AM Forensics fits when: When the search returns two hundred hits on a common name and someone has to determine which — if any — are your subject, then document how they decided.
/ Three reasons teams choose AM Forensics instead
Somebody has to clear the false positives
Identity resolution on common names is the actual work in adverse-media screening. AM Forensics does it and documents the basis for each inclusion and exclusion.
The negative finding, documented
When a subject is clean, your file needs proof you looked properly. A dated report listing the searches run and sources checked is that proof.
Priced per subject
No seats, no search credits. If you investigate episodically, pay episodically.
Subject Scoping Call
A 30-minute call on one live subject: what the open record is likely to hold, what it will not, and what a defensible report would cost. If the answer is that you do not need an investigation, we will tell you.
- Realistic read on what OSINT and records can establish
- Jurisdiction and source-availability constraints, up front
- Fixed price and turnaround before you commit
/ Top LexisNexis Diligence alternatives in 2026
If LexisNexis Diligence is not the right fit, these are the options worth comparing — starting with the one we would look at first.
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Independent practice
AM Forensics
An independent investigative due-diligence practice: open-source intelligence, public and corporate records, and metadata investigations for financial institutions, fintechs, investors, and counsel. When the search returns two hundred hits on a common name and someone has to determine which — if any — are your subject, then document how they decided.
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Screening & risk-intelligence database
LSEG World-Check
World-Check, now part of LSEG Risk Intelligence, is one of the most widely used screening databases for sanctions, PEPs, and adverse media, embedded in KYC workflows across the financial-services industry.
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Risk database & entity data
Moody's Grid
Moody's Grid is a risk database of sanctioned, politically exposed, and adversely reported entities, offered alongside Moody's broader entity, ownership, and company-data holdings for KYC and third-party screening.
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Corporate ownership data platform
Sayari
Sayari builds a graph of global corporate ownership, trade, and supply-chain data, letting analysts trace beneficial ownership and counterparty networks across jurisdictions from a single interface.
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Global investigations firm
Kroll
Kroll is the best-known name in corporate investigations, offering business intelligence, due diligence, forensic accounting, and cyber investigations at global scale. It is the default choice for large corporates and law firms on high-stakes matters.
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Investigative due diligence firm
Mintz Group
Mintz Group is a specialist investigations firm focused on background investigations, due diligence, and fact-finding for law firms, corporates, and investors, with a strong reputation for rigorous, source-based work.
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Global investigations firm
Nardello & Co.
Nardello & Co. is a global investigations firm founded by a former federal prosecutor, known for discreet, senior-led work on complex disputes, FCPA matters, and reputational investigations.
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Global risk consultancy
Control Risks
Control Risks is a global specialist risk consultancy covering political risk, security, crisis management, compliance, and investigations, serving multinationals operating in complex environments.
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Corporate intelligence & cyber
S-RM
S-RM is a corporate intelligence and cyber-security consultancy providing due diligence, investigations, and incident response, with a strong presence in the private-equity and law-firm markets.
/ Questions we actually get asked
Do you replace our LexisNexis subscription?
How do you handle common names?
What is adverse media screening worth if it is all false positives?
Can you do ongoing monitoring?
/ Related comparisons
AM Forensics vs LSEG World-Check
Any institution needing production sanctions and PEP screening embedded in onboarding.
AM Forensics vs Moody's Grid
Institutions screening large counterparty or vendor populations across multiple risk types.
AM Forensics vs Sayari
Teams doing continuous network analysis at volume who have analysts to run it.