Can I Present Text Messages as Evidence in Family Court
These days, most people apply text messages as one of their main modes of communication. While this makes advice easy in a lot of ways, it can also provide evidence in courts of all kinds. Increasingly, Los Angeles family unit law attorneys see that people want to use text messages as show in their divorce proceedings.
Most families enjoy the convenience of communicating with their spouse or children instantly with technology. Regardless of location, you can hands send text or straight messages from your social media accounts.
Even so, these text messages can besides reveal an ugly side in a marital relationship. For case, spouses might go engaged in a bitter statement and start sending threatening text messages. Also, these messages might prove a spouse is engaged in an extramarital relationship or even criminal action.
If the human relationship ends, these text messages could testify upward in divorce proceedings every bit incriminating evidence against the spouse in order for the other spouse to be awarded martial or to win a bitter child custody boxing.
Text messages have go a mutual form of bear witness during California divorce proceedings. Nevertheless, when using text messages as evidence in a divorce courtroom, not all messages are considered equal.
This means spouses who are getting divorced need to understand what type of letters could be used to their advantage during the divorce process.
By and large, text messages tin be open-door as show in family court. However, you must determine the answers to a few important questions before presenting text letters in a family court.
To give readers a better understanding about the use of text messages or emails in a California divorce, our Los Angeles family law attorneys are providing an overview below.
Are the Texts Relevant?
California is a no-fault divorce state. Every bit such, neither party has to testify that the other is responsible for the deterioration of the marriage. If the reason y'all want to submit the text messages is that you want to show your spouse is responsible for the divorce, it'due south amend to ditch the texts.
The court does not care about error or why the relationship ended. The last thing yous desire to do is appear to waste the court's time out of spite. However, there are many valid reasons for submitting text messages during divorce proceedings. You may want to provide prove that your spouse:
- Is attempting to hide marital assets
- Commits abuse or neglect against children
- Commits domestic violence
- Neglected kid care or support in favor of socializing
- Has an alcohol or substance corruption issue
- Harasses or threatens you
All of these bug and more can affect kid custody, restraining orders, and even the separation of assets. Your Los Angeles family law attorney can assist you make up one's mind if the content of the messages are relevant to the overall case.
Were the Messages Obtained Legally?
Any electronic messages used as evidence in a California divorce court must be authenticated. This ways it must be proven their spouse sent the text messages.
Receiving authentication could come in the form of getting your spouse to acknowledge they created and sent the messages, merely the courtroom might permit a third-political party eyewitness.
If your spouse sent the text messages to your phone, the messages are off-white game for divorce proceedings. Furthermore, if the bear witness exists on a shared device, yous can typically use them equally well. In some cases, you may get through a legal process to obtain messages on your spouse's personal devices.
Even so, you should never hack into your spouse's device or steal passwords in order to collect this bear witness. Not only will the messages be inadmissible, just attempting to submit stolen letters may reflect poorly on you.
Were the Texts Sent from Your Spouse?
If the text messages came from your spouse to you, nobody else needs to take the stand in society to present the evidence. However, y'all could also go incriminating texts from other people in your lives.
For example, if your ex-spouse'southward new partner sends incriminating letters, you may need to subpoena the person who sent the messages. Mostly, if yous take text messages from your spouse, they can be used equally testify during your divorce.
Some common examples why text messages between spouses tin exist relevant to divorce proceedings include proving one spouse is having an thing or attempting to hide assets. They are also ordinarily used to evidence your spouse has non been honest with the court on a variety of issues during the divorce process.
Are the Letters Authenticated?
Even when a message comes from a person'southward phone, you cannot exist sure that the phone's owner sent the bulletin. Anyone with access to the person's phone could, in theory, ship text messages while pretending to be the phone'due south possessor.
As such, California police requires text messages to be authenticated before being admitted to court.
Several California laws dictate how electronic communications tin can be authenticated. Below are the evidence code numbers and examples of when they may apply:
- Evidence Code § 1410 – the evidence code does non limit the means by which advice may exist authenticated
- Evidence Code § 1413 – a witness saw the person transport the message and attests to witnessing this activity
- Evidence Code § 1420 – the context of the message shows the bulletin was a reply from the person in question
- Bear witness Code § 1421 – in the message itself, the person says something that only they would know
By looking at your texts, your attorney tin can let you know how you tin can authenticate the messages.
How Do You Come Across in the Texts?
There are at least ii sides to every divorce. When reading the text messages in question, it may be clear to you that the other person is in the wrong.
However, it's important to take a footstep back and consider what others may think of the letters you sent during the chat.
The truth is that all people tin can get heated sometimes, specially in the center of a contentious divorce. While information technology may be understandable if you lost your atmosphere, presenting those texts in court may hurt your case more than than assist it.
This is another case in which the help of an expert chaser can help, as they see these judges oftentimes and may accept seen similar cases before.
Hire a Los Angeles Family Law Attorney for Help
California divorce proceedings are typically stressful and time-consuming, peculiarly if they involve child custody hearings or a large amount of marital assets to divide betwixt the spouses.
Y'all should e'er seek the advice of an experienced attorney who handles family police matters in the state of California. Our Los Angeles divorce and family constabulary attorneys help spouses throughout Southern California with their legal bug.
If you need more than information about using your spouse'south text messages during your divorce, call our office to review the details and legal options. If you are unsure about whatever part of the divorce process in California, be sure to hire experienced Los Angeles family constabulary attorneys.
Furman & Zavatsky are a family law and divorce law firm located in the San Fernando Valley area of Los Angeles County at 15821 Ventura Blvd #690 Encino, CA 91436. Contact our office for a free case review at (818) 528-3471.
Source: https://www.furmanzavatsky.com/can-text-messages-be-used-in-california-divorce-court/
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