Tonight’s post on Social Media and Family Law was written by our Atlanta and Lawrenceville attorney, Brandy Alexander.
How many times have you ever said to yourself, “WOW let me take a picture of that (insert thing here) and post it on Facebook?”
We live in a world where the “in” thing is to publically document our lives. We document via photographs on Instagram and Facebook, in writing on Facebook and Twitter and the younger crowd now documents via video on Snapchat. Soon enough there will be other outlets for doing one or all of these things because well, that is the era in which we live.
Sometimes, often times, we use social media to brag or boast about our latest and greatest accomplishment-the new car we just bought or that our children made the A honor roll this semester. Then there are times when we use social media as an outlet for our anger and our frustrations.
There are perhaps fewer upsetting and frustrating times in our lives than when we are in the middle of a divorce or child custody battle. Before you know it, you have told your 562 Facebook friends that your ex-wife is Satan’s mistress and you have cautioned your children not to be like her when they grow up. OOPS!
Surely, off your 562 Facebook friends, one of them is still friends with Satan’s mistress and surely, they have informed her of your rant on social media. Could this affect your custody case? Absolutely! Oh and remember that trip to the Spain you posted pictures of on Instagram last month? They were beautiful pictures, you appeared to have the time of your life in Madrid! Unfortunately, you’re going to have a tough time explaining to the court how you are behind in your child support payments but you are taking trips overseas.
I know what you’re thinking: “but I blocked my wife on Facebook/ Twitter/ Instagram.” Well, that may be so, but remember these things: a) where there’s a will, there is most assuredly a way, and b) the likelihood that you deleted every single person you and your spouse have/had in common is slim. Social media is a wonderful tool! It assists in our ability to keep up with our loved ones no matter where they are but it can also get you into a whole you can’t dig yourself out of in family law so be careful.
While you are documenting your own life you don’t want to dig your own grave, too.
Brandy Alexander