Deal origination for private equity

Every target,
on the record.

Docket runs three AI agents across your acquisition targets and returns a structured file on every company. Each researched answer includes its source, supporting excerpt, and collection date.

Research your target list →See how the agents work

Self-serve or fully managed · your list or ours · outreach optional

Or look around the platform with illustrative data. No login required.

DKT-0417Cedarline Systemscedarline.com

Triage✓Scout✓Audit✓

legal_entityCedarline Systems, Inc.sos.state filing2026-08-04

ownershipfounder_owned“wholly owned by the two brothers who founded it in 1998”cedarline.com/about2026-09-02

headcount74linkedin company page2026-09-11

vertical.primaryhealthcarededicated page, 9 named hospital systemscedarline.com/industries2026-09-02

prior_acquisitions2 · both in-categorypress release archive2026-07-29

revenue_estimateunanswered4 sources checked · pending new evidenceno public evidence found2026-09-11

12 of 13 questions answered · 1 unansweredevery value quotes a retained pagefit 82 · Tier A

Example research record for an invented company (a healthcare-vertical software business). The demo workspace and the sample docket (21 invented HVAC contractors) are separate illustrative mandates; none of the three shares companies or data.

Research you can review

See the evidence behind your shortlist.

Private-company data often arrives without enough context to assess it. Docket retains the source page, supporting excerpt, and collection date for each researched answer. Your team can check the findings, understand conflicting information, and identify gaps before approaching a target.

Three agents

Three stages, from identity checks to evidence review.

Each agent has a defined role. Triage checks identity and fit, Scout collects answers, and Audit reviews the supporting evidence.

Triage

Confirms identity and fit

Triage checks that each record refers to the right company, matches its website to the legal entity, and identifies duplicates. It checks your disqualifying criteria first, so research can stop when a company falls outside your mandate.

Company identity checked before detailed research
Duplicate records linked with their history preserved
Disqualifying criteria checked first
Shared websites flagged for review

Scout

Collects the answers

Scout researches each company against your criteria using company websites, filings, job postings, and relevant directories. It records answers in a consistent format, with a supporting excerpt and a retained copy of the source page.

Consistent answers based on your criteria
Supporting excerpts linked to retained source pages
Source pages saved for later review
Unanswered questions recorded with sources checked

Audit

Reviews the evidence

Audit reviews the collected evidence in a separate pass. It checks whether excerpts support the answers, reviews conflicting sources, and removes unsupported findings. It works only from the retained material, leaving unresolved questions visible for your team.

Separate review of the collected evidence
Conflicts and their resolutions recorded
Unsupported findings removed from accepted answers
Unresolved questions kept visible

The record

A complete history of your research.

Review the source material behind an answer and see how it has changed. Corrections preserve the earlier finding, so your team can follow the history of a company record.

The platform applies these evidence requirements to each research record.

An open, blank ruled ledger on a desk beside a brass stamp and a magnifying glass

01Accepted answers follow the definitions in your mandate.
02Supporting excerpts are checked against retained source pages.
03Unanswered questions include a record of the sources checked.
04Corrections preserve previous entries and their history.
05Historical versions remain available for review.

The platform

Your target research in one workspace.

Compare companies against your criteria, review their evidence, and manage approved outreach. Export the results when you need them outside the platform.

Explore the demo →illustrative data · no login required

The Docket register: eighty acquisition targets with a score box per criterion, what each record still owes, and its stage — demo.docket.capitalThe register

Demo workspace. All companies, people, and quotations shown are fictional, and separate from the home-page example record and the sample docket.

A company record: each field with its value, the page it came from, the date, and the sentence quoted underneath

Review the evidence for each answer

Open a company record to see its answers, supporting excerpts, and source pages. Findings removed during review remain in the history.

The coverage screen: one row per question in the mandate, with how many companies answered, filed a not-found, or still owe it

Track unanswered questions

See coverage for each research question across the target list, including completed answers, pending research, and questions where no evidence was found.

The outreach screen: a drafted email with the reasons for the company beside it and the approval gates it must pass

Approve each outreach message

Review each draft alongside the reasons the company qualified. If the wording changes after approval, the revised message requires your approval again.

The criteria screen: the eight scored dimensions, each with its points and the rule that awards them

Manage your research criteria

Set the research questions, accepted answers, and scoring rules in your mandate settings. New questions are queued across the existing target list.

The run board: twenty agent lanes running at once, each labelled with the company and the agent working it

Monitor research progress and cost

See what each agent researched, the answers it recorded, elapsed time, and cost. Multiple companies are researched concurrently, with progress visible as work completes.

How it works

From acquisition criteria to an approved shortlist.

Define your acquisition criteria

Set the criteria that matter to your mandate, including size, ownership, sector, and revenue mix. These become the research questions applied to each company. You can update the criteria as your thesis develops.

Your list, or one we build

Import an existing spreadsheet or ask us to build a target list around your thesis. You can combine both approaches and expand the list as you identify relevant segments.

Review the researched shortlist

The agents research and review each company, then rank the results against your scoring rules. Your team can inspect the evidence behind each answer and see which questions remain open.

Approve outreach or export your results

Choose the companies to approach and approve the messaging. We can manage email, LinkedIn, and phone outreach on your behalf, or you can export the research for your own team. Outreach is optional on every plan.

Tailored per firm

Research built around your acquisition thesis.

Define what the agents research, what evidence an answer requires, and how each criterion affects the ranking. Update these settings as your mandate evolves.

Criteria specific to your mandate

Define the questions, accepted answers, and evidence requirements for your acquisition strategy. Changes are recorded so your team can see which criteria applied to each assessment.

Apply new questions across the list

When you add a research question, existing companies are queued for review against it. Track progress across the list and see which answers are still pending.

Adjust your scoring

Adjust weights, thresholds, and disqualifying criteria in the platform. Rankings update using the evidence already collected, with the underlying research preserved.

Query your research in Claude or ChatGPT

Use a read-only connection to ask questions about your target list and receive results with citations. Filter companies by ownership, size, sector, or other criteria in your mandate.

Optional

Outreach on your behalf.

Turn your shortlist into conversations with owners. We can manage outreach under your firm’s name, using messaging and target companies you approve.

A fanned stack of blank cream envelopes on a dark desk beside a brass letter opener

3channels

Coordinated email sequences, LinkedIn requests and follow-ups, and phone qualification.

Yourfirm’s name

Outreach represents your firm and uses messaging and sender profiles you approve before launch.

SPFDKIM · DMARC

Dedicated sending domains with email authentication. This supports sender identity; it does not guarantee delivery or inbox placement.

Outreach controls

You approve every target. Exclude existing relationships or any company you do not want approached.

Opt-outs are permanent. Requests not to be contacted are recorded and applied to future outreach.

Your research stays private. Each client has a separate database. Research is not pooled or resold. Sector exclusivity applies where agreed in your mandate.

Who sends the outreach, who is responsible, how opt-out works

Applies only where optional outreach is enabled.

Who sends: Messages go out on your firm’s behalf from approved sender identities and dedicated sending domains, and identify the firm represented. You approve the wording and each target before contact.
Who is responsible: The client is responsible for what is sent on its behalf; hiring an agency does not transfer liability. Docket is a research service, not a broker-dealer or M&A adviser.
How opt-out works: Requests not to be contacted are recorded and applied to future outreach, and a reply stops the sequence. Channels, geography and opt-out handling are agreed before a campaign runs.

Read trust and data handling and the outreach compliance guide. This is a description of our process, not legal advice.

The library

Research for your origination process.

Practical guides to acquisition sourcing, company data, and evidence quality, drawing on primary sources and published research.

Origination

Proprietary deal flow and the evidence on auctions

What the research says about negotiated sales and auctions, early access to sellers, and how buyers build relationships with targets before a sale process.

3,345words · read →

Data

Sources of acquisition target data and their limits

A field guide to registries, filings, company websites and commercial databases: what each source can establish, where its coverage ends, and its conflicts.

2,921words · read →

Method

Evidence standards for acquisition research

Evidence standards for company research, drawn from auditing and archival practice: retained sources, supporting excerpts, conflicts and research history.

2,627words · read →

Start a mandate from the questions, not a blank sheet.

136 working references: sector playbooks, sourcing methods, the public records that can answer a screening question, and the hypotheses behind common buy-and-build theses.

24 pages

Sector origination playbooks

Research templates for lower-middle-market niches: NAICS scope, the screening questions the agents ask, the public evidence that can answer them, and what disqualifies a company.

HVAC services · Plumbing services · Electrical contracting→

10 pages

Deal-sourcing methods

How each origination channel works, what it costs in time and attention, what kind of evidence it produces, and where it is the right tool.

Intermediated sale processes · Business broker networks · Direct proprietary outreach→

10 pages

Comparisons

Head-to-head choices a deal team actually faces, compared on fixed dimensions, with the conditions under which each side wins.

Intermediated vs proprietary deal sourcing · Databases vs primary research · In-house vs outsourced origination→

30 pages

Data-source directory

Registries, filings, licensing records, statistics and company-published material: what each source can establish about a private company and what it cannot.

SEC EDGAR · SEC Form D · Census County Business Patterns→

12 pages

Buy-and-build thesis notes

Recurring acquisition-thesis patterns written as hypotheses to test: the evidence that would support each one, the evidence that would end it, and how it changes the list.

Route-density roll-up · Licensed-trade consolidation · Recurring maintenance contracts→

50 pages

Glossary terms

Definitions of origination, M&A process, research and outreach terms, each with how it shows up in practice.

Add-on acquisition · Adjusted EBITDA · Business broker→

Browse the full catalog →

Pricing

Choose how your research is managed.

Use the platform directly or have a dedicated analyst manage the research. Outreach is optional on every plan.

Self-serve

Run it yourself

$1,500/ month

Manage your target list, research criteria, and results directly in the platform.

Triage, Scout and Audit on your list
Your criteria as the agents' questions
Up to 250 companies researched a month
Full evidence trail on every field
CSV and Excel export, any time
Read-only access through Claude or ChatGPT

Discuss Self-serve

Managed

White-glove

$12,000/ month

A dedicated analyst manages your research, reviews the criteria each week, and coordinates outreach when enabled.

Everything in Self-serve, no volume cap
Dedicated analyst, daily written report
Research criteria reviewed weekly
Target list built for you, or bring yours
Optional email, LinkedIn and phone outreach
Each handed-over reply comes with a written brief: mandate fit and open questions

Book a walkthrough

Enterprise

Multi-mandate

Custom

Coordinate multiple mandates with separate research workspaces, access controls, and agreed sector exclusivity.

A separate docket per mandate
Sector exclusivity as agreed in your mandate
Isolated database, no shared tenancy
SSO and per-seat access control
Custom agents and private data sources
A named escalation contact and response times, set out in the written scope

Talk to us

See a finished docket before you talk to us.

Sample — fictional companies: 21 invented HVAC contractors on an invented mandate, with scores, quoted evidence, succession signals, open questions and outreach status. Nothing in it is a real business.

Sample PDF Sample CSV

Monthly, no lock-in on Self-serve · Managed runs on a three-month minimum · outreach is optional on every plan

We’ll research your first 10 targets for free.

Send a target list and your acquisition criteria. We’ll return company records with scores, supporting evidence, and any unanswered questions for your review.

Send your first 10 targets Book a walkthrough

Free initial research · export your data at any time

Prefer a structured brief? Use the enquiry template or read how an engagement works.

Not ready to talk? Open the platform and read a few entries yourself.

Every target,on the record.