When a divorce is spurred by social media discoveries, it’s often unofficially called a “Facebook divorce,” even if the information came from Twitter, MySpace or any other social media site. This may be more common than you’d assume, Facebook divorces have come about for many reasons, such as one spouse finding messages between the other spouse and a third party that hint at an affair.
However, the link between Facebook and divorce goes beyond just causing the split. In modern divorce cases, the information from Facebook can be used during the divorce proceedings as evidence. In fact, the American Association of Matrimony Lawyers (AAML) found that two-thirds of lawyers used this evidence extensively. Below are a few examples of how this could happen:
1. You may argue that you have plenty of time to raise your child, but your spouse could find pictures of you partying with your friends or traveling constantly, and that could be used to counter your claim.
2. If blamed of having an affair, you may dispute it, but messages to the third party or pictures of the two of you together — even if you didn’t tag them yourself — could tell the real tale.
3. You could suggest that you don’t want to pay as much as you’ve been ordered for child support, claiming you can’t afford it, but Facebook posts about getting a raise or pictures of trips and other expensive purchases could be used to argue that you have plenty of cash on hand.
The world of social media is still relatively new, but the impact on divorce cases has been drastic and fast-paced, so you must know how this can play into your case in Florida.
Source: FIndLaw, “Facebook Divorce,” accessed Feb. 19, 2016