Social Media Use During a Divorce or Custody Case

• Author: Justin W. Soulen
• Pages: 9-11

SUMMER 2021 9

Social media use continues to rise at an exponential

rate through an ever-increasing number of platforms

across all demographics. In this day and age, espe-

cially during a pandemic, you would be hard-pressed

to nd someone who does not use Facebook, Twitter,

or Instagram to communicate with others; look to a discussion

board like Reddit or Quora; or use a dating site like Match.

com or a dating application like Tinder or Bumble. As

information and data sharing become easier and more

widespread (and sometimes inadvertent), individuals need to

be mindful as to (1) what information they are disseminating,

(2) who might have access to this information, and (3) the

potential legal ramications of the disclosure. is is especially

relevant in the context of a family law case. Whether you are

working through a divorce, support, or custody action, it

remains as critical as ever to consider the potential eects of

your social media use (including the actions of third parties

with whom you interact) during your case.

The Platforms

When you hear the phrase “social media,” the platforms that

often come to mind are Facebook, Twitter, YouTube,

Snapchat, and Instagram, but it is important to remember

that there are many additional platforms that could feature

information about you that could be relevant to your

divorce. Have you shared your professional history or

professional updates on LinkedIn, left a review on Yelp or

TripAdvisor, or posted a question or answer on a discussion

board like Reddit or Quora? Have you signed up for Match.

com, Bumble, Tinder, or any of the ever-multiplying dating

websites and applications?

Every platform on this limited list could contain easily

accessible information that could be relevant to your case,

including, but certainly not limited to, statements you have

published, your location on certain dates, evidence of your

spending and lifestyle, and your relationship to relevant third

parties. In the divorce and custody context, you should

expect that all of this information will be accessed and

reviewed by the opposing party’s counsel.

Many users are unaware of the somewhat unnerving

amount of data that these platforms compile about the

user. By way of example, Facebook allows you to download

your account “archive,” and even a brief review of that

archive quickly illuminates just how much personal

information the platform permanently stores, including,

but not limited to, every post you ever published (includ-

ing the metadata for photographs); the location of your

logins (essentially a location tracker for an active user); the

content, dates, and times of all sent and received private

messages; and the history of all friend requests initiated or

received (whether or not they were accepted).

Users should keep themselves apprised of the personal

Social Media

Use During

a Divorce or

Custody Case

BY JUSTIN W. SOULEN

Published in Family Advocate, Volume 44, Number 1, Summer 2021. © 2021 by the American Bar Association. Reproduced with permission. All rights reserved. This information or any portion thereof

may not be copied or disseminated in any form or by any means or stored in an electronic database or retrieval system without the express written consent of the American Bar Association.