How Social Media Can Affect Family Law Cases
According to Global Data Insights, there are more than 250 million Americans on social media. That’s 73 percent of the population! The average user posts everything from pets and fitness plans to personal photos and family updates.
If you’re anything like the average user, you probably share news about your family on social media as well. But this can be a risky venture if you’re in the middle of a legal battle. Especially in cases involving divorce or custody disputes, posting about your ex or kids can have real consequences in the courtroom. You can also get into trouble by posting personal, financial, or romantic details about your life.
What information is okay to share? What common mistakes should you avoid? Consider this your guide to responsibly posting on social media during a family law case.
How Social Media Can Impact Your Court Proceedings
Your social media posts can be used by opposing counsel in a number of ways.
One of the most obvious traps is proving that you lied about something. For example, if you claim during divorce proceedings that you were never unfaithful, opposing counsel can try to find evidence that you had an affair. This evidence could include messages, posted photos, tagged photos, and dating app profiles. The information doesn’t have to be posted directly by you; another person can share it.
Opposing counsel can also mine your social media content for information on your lifestyle, especially as it relates to your income. Do you post photos of lavish and expensive meals? Do you mention cars, houses, vacations, or work bonuses? Do you react to the stock market or imply ownership of any? If so, all of these things can become evidence of what assets you have and how you spend your money.
The reverse can also get you into trouble. When you don’t have a high income, opposing counsel can try to argue that you lack the means to support your children. Beware making any posts about being broke, unemployed, or between jobs. Be careful even with generic complaints about the cost of school supplies or new clothes for growing kids: You don’t want your off-the-cuff remarks to become a chain of evidence that suggests financial hardship.
Custody battles can raise questions about you as a parent. Have you ever posted anything that could imply you’re unsuitable as a guardian? Illegal activity would be the most damaging thing to share, but your posts don’t have to be that obvious. For instance, repeated mentions of alcohol can be used to imply addiction. References to violence can be tied to claims of physical or emotional abuse. Photos of a messy apartment can be exaggerated into a dirty and unstable living environment for children.
Last but not least, you’ll want to be careful with how you portray yourself as an overall person. Look at the trends and tones of your social media as a whole. Do you seem like a stable, responsible person? Consider how a stranger would judge you. Remember that they don’t have the intimate details of your life to understand the “why”s of your posts. For example, if you leave a lot of angry comments or make a lot of heated posts, that can make you seem like someone with anger management issues. It doesn’t matter if you’re a laid-back person in real life who just uses X or Instagram to vent. Examine your social media account from an outside perspective, and make a judgemental call about the person that you see.
How Social Media is Used in the Courtroom
To stay safe on social media during a family law case, you’ll also need to understand how your posts can be used in a court of law. The intricacies may surprise you!
The short version: Social media posts are entered as evidence by family law attorneys. They need to prove that you were the author of the posts, and they need to provide things like dates and times as part of the evidence chain.
The long version: As with evidence in any kind of trial, your social media posts must be proven both “authentic” and “pertinent.”
Authentic means that they were written by you. If this fact is in dispute, it isn’t enough to simply deny writing them; an expert can prove that they were generated and shared from your device, or a third party can verify that you created them. You can also prove it yourself if you ever make a claim of ownership over your accounts and all of their contents.
Pertinent means that it’s relevant to your family law case. For example, if you claim financial hardship during divorce proceedings but post on social media about a vacation, that can be used as evidence of your financial status. If you engage in any risky behavior, that can be used as proof of your irresponsibility as a parent.
As for how the evidence is presented, attorneys will usually take screenshots of your posts and print them out. They’ll also include meta-data like dates, timestamps, and account names. Deleting posts doesn’t always work; that data can be recovered and presented as evidence, too.
Another thing to beware is social media content about you that didn’t come from you. A friend might share an incriminating photo. Your ex might share a message that you sent them or a post that you made on a private account. All of this can be counted as admissible evidence.
Avoiding the Consequences of Social Media During a Family Law Case
Many things that you say on social media can be used against you during a family law case. To ensure a favorable outcome, monitor your posts and photos carefully. Avoid mentions of your divorce, including any details about things like alimony, and don’t discuss your custody disputes at all. Ask your loved ones to be discreet with their social media content as well. When you’re in the middle of a legal battle, it never hurts to be overly cautious. If you need assistance, don’t hesitate to call an experienced family law office like Davis & Associates
