North Carolina residents who are getting a divorce may want to be careful while using social media during the separation process. The best practice during a divorce is to avoid posting on social media altogether. Many people have revealed information on such sites that ended up jeopardizing their divorce proceedings.
For example, one woman was awarded more child support after her attorney discovered on LinkedIn that her spouse had a side business. Another man was denied alimony when he posted online about his job and vacation after claiming that he was unemployed.
Both emails and texts could be subject to a subpoena. People might think that blocking a spouse on social media will provide adequate protection; however, mutual friends might still post information that can be seen by others. A good policy is to resist putting anything in writing that one would not want brought to be up in court. Individuals should not delete their social media accounts as this could be construed as destruction of evidence.
Online dating profiles may also present problems as many people tend to exaggerate information posted to such sites. If a profile was created before the divorce was completed, it could also suggest that the person was cheating.
People who are alerted to a spouse’s potential inconsistencies based on social media posts may want to discuss the information with their attorney. An attorney might be able to help a person decide what might be worth pursuing. In some cases, contesting a spouse’s claims are worthwhile, but an attorney may help a person decide when that is the case.