Background checks or investigations of managers of hedge funds, private equity funds and venture capital funds are in the spotlight with the recent frauds involving Bernard Madoff in New York and Stanford Financial in Houston.  For defrauded investors, the focus in the Madoff and Stanford contexts has shifted to litigation and asset recovery.  For those who still are invested in third-party managed funds or are considering investing in such vehicles, the Madoff, Stanford and other scandals have emphasized the importance of investigating the background of the individuals responsible for managing the funds.  No background investigation can prevent all fraud.  However, background investigations can indicate signs of a checkered past, which in turn can increase the risk profile of a potential investment.  In a guest article, Jack McCann and Daniel Weiss, both of investigation firm McCann Global, discuss the specific categories of information that investors should look into when conducting a background check on a hedge fund manager, the frequency with which background checks should be performed (and renewed) and the manner in which background checks should (and should not) be performed.