Technology and social media challenges during divorce proceedings are more common today than ever before. We carry smartphones with powerful capabilities in our pockets every day. Many vehicles now include GPS systems that help guide us wherever we need to go. It’s a world of FaceTime, Zoom, and AI that can answer countless questions in an instant. We can reach people instantly, too, whether by email, text, or social media.
In many ways, technology improves our daily lives. It simplifies routine tasks and changes how we work, communicate, and live. It has revolutionized the way we work and live. In some ways, it has also significantly impacted us in ways we may not even realize – until we have reason to notice.
If you are considering divorce, technology and social media may play a larger role in your case than you expect. Let’s take a look at some of those impacts together.
Digital Data as Evidence
Very few people live entirely off the grid today. Most people use social media, online banking, smartphones, smart watches, and GPS-enabled vehicles every day, to name only a few of the technologies that many people utilize daily. Whether we think about it or not, there is a digital trail for much of what we do in life.
In a divorce case, this digital trail can often be used as evidence. How it may be used, and what specifically may be used, will vary, depending upon the circumstances of each case.
Social Media
There are so many social media services to choose from today. Between Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Snapchat, X, and other services, many of us use at least one, and sometimes many, of these platforms.
When you’re using social media, it is easy to think of it as just a service that connects you socially to others. And in many ways, it does serve that very important purpose. It is a great way to stay connected and obtain and share information. Many people forget that social media can become important evidence during a divorce case.
Some evidence that might be gathered on social media includes:
Posts made by the account owner
It’s no secret that in the time leading up to and during a divorce, emotions can run very high. In some cases, there may have been marital misconduct of some kind that has made the situation particularly difficult. When you are feeling emotionally on edge, it’s only human nature to want to talk to others. It’s normal to want to feel sympathy, to commiserate, and to feel angry.
Those emotions are completely normal. However, sharing too much on social media can create problems during a divorce case. The truth is, even if a post is made in haste and later deleted, a screenshot is all it takes to save that information permanently.
Posts made by others
Social media is exactly that – social. Many people post daily about a wide variety of things. This means that in a divorce, each party must be concerned not only with posts they write themselves, but also with posts, pictures, and videos that others may share on social media platforms.
For a spouse affected by marital misconduct, this evidence may be extremely helpful. Often, one spouse may deny that they were having an affair or engaging in other harmful behaviors. Sometimes, pictures and videos posted by others of that spouse may confirm suspicions and be saved for later use in a court case.
Another example might be a child custody dispute. While no parent ever wants to think of the other parent as being irresponsible and either drinking and driving with the children or otherwise leaving them unattended, sometimes these things do happen. In certain circumstances, there may be social media posts showing that one spouse was out at a bar while their text messages said they were home, as just one example. In these situations, saving the social media evidence can be very important and helpful for the other spouse.
Direct messaging
Another feature of many social media accounts is the ability to send direct messages. Certainly, it will be important and helpful to save any direct messages you receive from your spouse that you believe might be helpful in your divorce. Your attorney will be able to review those messages with you and determine what may or may not be beneficial to use.
In other cases, you may wonder if your spouse is directly messaging someone else. Those messages may be very helpful too, but it’s essential to be careful about how you obtain them. If the messages are provided to you by a third-party, or if you uncover them on a device that you and your spouse share, you will generally be within your legal means to use those messages as evidence in your case. Otherwise, you should not attempt to hack into your spouse’s account or otherwise use spyware to try to obtain this information.
Aside from social media, there are obviously many other forms of technology that may produce evidence that can be used in a divorce case.
Other Technology That May Be Used in a Divorce
Technology continues to evolve quickly. As a result, new forms of digital evidence continue to emerge in divorce cases. As a result, this is by no means an exhaustive list. However, some of the technologies that are commonly used as sources of evidence in a divorce include:
GPS Trackers
Many people have GPS on their phones, watches, and in their cars. Often, this evidence can be very helpful in a divorce. As with social media, however, it is important to realize that there is a difference between saving information that was intentionally shared with you (as on a family sharing plan) rather than installing an unknown tracker in your spouse’s vehicle or elsewhere.
Phone Recordings
Another question we’re often asked is whether it’s legal to record phone conversations. The answer to this question can vary, as different states have different rules regarding recording. North Carolina, for example, is a “one-party consent” state. This means that as long as one party to a conversation knows that it is being recorded, the recording is legal. Even so, things can become complicated if one spouse is not in North Carolina when the conversation occurs. Again, talking with your attorney about your situation and the best course of action is almost always the best decision.
As you think through and process all of this information about technology and social media and how it may affect your divorce, it’s important to remember that social media and technology are wonderful in many ways – provided that they are used within the proper limits. Knowing and understanding those limits can be difficult, and that’s why you need an attorney who knows and understands the law to help you through it. At The Law Office of Dustin McCrary, we’re here for you.
The Law Office of Dustin McCrary – We’re here to help!
If you’ve read all of this information and you find yourself feeling slightly worried because you still aren’t sure exactly what it might mean for your particular case, that’s understandable. Technology is complex – and so is the law. When you combine the two, confusion is somewhat expected. The good news is that you don’t have to navigate this journey alone. At the Law Office of Dustin McCrary, we’re here to help. Whatever concerns you may have, our team is here to help. We provide experienced legal guidance tailored to your situation. If you’re ready to get started today, give us a call. We look forward to speaking with you soon.