Bay Area Divorce Lawyer Blog
As social media becomes increasingly more prevalent and dominant in our lives, not surprisingly it is increasingly involved in that time honored life passage known as Divorce. First, Facebook may actually help facilitate the divorce. A 2010 survey by the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers (an odd name for an organization devoted to the opposite of marital bliss) found that four out of five lawyers reported an increasing number of divorce cases citing evidence from social networking sites, primarily Facebook.
To begin with, Facebook can facilitate divorce in any number of ways. It is easy to rekindle old flames and to start new ones online; flirtatious comments can lead to more and/or can inflame jealousy that undermines the marriage. Or Facebook addiction, like any addiction, can lead to marital breakdown.
Once the divorce process starts, Facebook increasingly plays a role in custody and other battles as spouses use the site to spy on each other and find incriminating evidence such as drug or alcohol use or other misdeeds to paint the other as an unfit parent.
Words of Advice: Don’t say anything you wouldn’t say directly to your ex or to a court. You might be discreet but pay attention to friends’ Facebook pages and posts – they may include photos or comments involving you. No matter what your privacy settings are, you cannot control your friends’ settings.