Thursday, October 28, 2010

Divorce and Facebook: Protecting Yourself Online

Social media allows us to comment quickly and casually about our lives, but during a divorce, the consequences of sharing sensitive information may affect the outcome of a divorce settlement. In Georgia, divorce lawyers and family law attorneys can use blogs, Facebook, LinkeIn, Myspace and Twitter posts as evidence in court, so it’s important for people in the midst of divorce to be careful about over-sharing.

In the midst of a painful divorce, it can be tempting to make negative comments about an ex. While there’s no legal recourse for posting a negative opinion about your spouse, it’s important to understand the repercussions. If there are children involved and the court deems your dialogue traumatic or damaging, contact with your children may be restricted. A child’s well-being is incredibly important in the eyes of the law.

If you’ve been celebrating your new single status by attending more parties or bars than usual, you may want to remove sensitive photographs from the web, especially if you have children. You could be seen as an irresponsible parent, and you could lose custody.

Social media users also need to avoid the impulse to show off new purchases. Avoid posting pictures of the Harley your spouse wouldn’t let you buy, a new vacation home in Puerto Rico, or of the flying lessons you’re taking. Evidence of major purchases or extravagant spending could impact your divorce settlement or give the other party cause to investigate your earnings statements.

If you have a new girlfriend or boyfriend in the picture, be sure to keep it private. A skilled divorce attorney may try to position you as someone who wasn’t committed to the marriage.

For someone going through a divorce, protecting your image is important. If you feel like you can’t control yourself online, it might be best to refrain from using your accounts until the divorce is over.

No comments:

Post a Comment