Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and, now, TikTok – social media is a huge part of most adults’ lives. Social media can be an effective platform for meeting new people and interacting with family and friends.
However, if you are dealing with a legal matter, like divorce, it is important that you are mindful of your social media activity. This is because your social media activity can impact your divorce case in a variety of ways.
A picture can be worth a thousand words … or more
No law prohibits you from seeing someone before finalizing your divorce, especially if you and your spouse are separated. However, “introducing” your new love to your social media family can complicate your child custody case. This is especially true if your new relationship can be perceived as a threat to the child’s wellbeing. If your ex can prove that your new relationship is eating into your parenting time, then they can question your fitness for custody.
Your words can (and will be) used against you
You are free to share anything with your social media family as long as it is legal, of course. However, any social media activity that appears to disparage your ex can cause problems. Do not threaten your spouse either directly or indirectly. Likewise, do not disparage them. Doing so could complicate your asset division and/or custody case, depending on the circumstances.
Safeguarding your rights and interests
Divorce is certainly a very tumultuous undertaking. During those challenging times, it is easy to want to vent your frustrations to any and everyone. And this includes taking to social media to talk about what you are going through. However, it is important that you steer clear of social media activities that can negatively hurt your divorce case.