Think Twice When Using Social Media During Family Law Matters

From The National Law Review:

The National Law Review has a recent article addressing the impact of social media posts by parties during pending family law litigation. Parties often overlook the detrimental effects that may impact pending custody, child support and alimony outcomes due to their improper use of social media. 

All relevant evidence is admissible. Therefore, social media posts may be introduced as evidence in a pending family law matter if it is relevant. A party seeking to admit social media posts as evidence must consider whether the evidence has the tendency to make a fact more or less probable than it would be without the evidence. If admission of the evidence makes a fact “more probable,” the evidence overcomes the initial relevancy burden. Further, the second hurdle requires the evidence to be authenticated to be relevant. 

How to properly use social media? First, the parties should not share private information regarding the case. Second, opine as to discrete issues or rulings made in the pending family law dispute on social media. Third, the party should not disparage the opposing party's character on social media.

Read more here.