Child Support Lawyer

What gets posted on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, either by a child or a parent, may eventually be used in court against a mother or father during a child custody hearing if the content paints a negative picture of their parenting capabilities. For example, let’s say a mother’s Facebook photos reveal excessive travel without her young child. The father could present those photos as evidence to the court, who in turn can rule against the mother regarding custody.

In the Best Interest of the Child

When two parents cannot come to a custody agreement on their own, the matter will have to be settled in court by a judge. In these situations, each party will submit evidence to the court showing their attributes as a caretaker, and potentially the negative traits that the other party possesses. Custody decisions are always made in what the court believes is the best interest of the child. As such, any negative characteristics that are brought up in court will harm your chances of a successful custody decision in your favor. A judge wants to see the following elements:

•            Caretaking capabilities of the parent
•            Stability
•            Financial independence
•            Clean and safe home
•            Loving, nurturing traits
•            A parent that keeps their word and shows up on time
•            Other characteristics that will lead to a positive, stable living environment

Anything that deters from these positive elements will only hurt that parent’s chances of being granted the custody decision they hope to receive.

Social Media That Portrays You in an Unseemly Light

Social media can be used as evidence of either parent’s excessive drinking, unstable lifestyle, promiscuity, violent outbursts, foul language, or intolerance of others. It can be used to paint an accurate or an inaccurate picture of what that parent is truly like outside of the courtroom, and judges may use this information to make a decision in your child’s custody case.

Negative Postings from the Child

A court can also use information from a child’s social media account to make a custody decision. For example, if the child’s social media account shows them behaving in an out of control, self-destructive, or otherwise negative manner when they are in custody of a certain parent, that can be used against that party’s parenting and child-caring attributes.

Call a Custody Lawyer Today for Legal Assistance

Seventy-seven percent of Americans have a social media profile. As people spend more and more time on social media, a larger percentage of their lives ends up getting documented, for better or for worse. Social media has a way of impacting nearly every aspect of our lives. Child custody is no exception. Call today to schedule a consultation with a skilled family attorney.

Source: Child Support Lawyer Bloomington, IL, Pioletti & Pioletti