Social Media & Divorce: How to Conduct Yourself Properly

These days, most adults between the ages of 18 and 50 have at least one social media account. A large percentage of our clients have a Facebook account, a LinkedIn account, and an Instagram account, while some have Snapchat too.

While countless adults in the United States are accustomed to scrolling through, posting, direct messaging, and commenting on social media, most of them have never had to conduct themselves on social media while going through a divorce.

Now, this experience...is usually brand-new and unfortunately, it’s not unusual for divorcing spouses to make some big, irreversible mistakes that hurt their divorce case. In light of that, we want to share some tips and advice for handling yourself on social media during divorce proceedings.

How Social Media Can Impact Divorce

Even though California is technically a “no-fault” divorce state, that doesn’t mean that your social media posts can’t hurt your divorce because they can. Here are some key examples of how your social posts can impact your divorce:

1. If you are arguing that you can’t afford spousal support payments, pictures of you on a lavish vacation, with a new sports car, or otherwise spending money freely will not support your argument.

2. If you change your status from “married” to “single” before the divorce is final, it can anger your spouse and quickly turn a collaborative divorce into a contested divorce, which can be a lot more expensive.

3. If you’re fighting for custody of your children, pictures of you on dates, partying, or drinking alcohol will not paint you in a good light and can influence the judge’s opinion of your parenting abilities.

4. If you complain about your spouse, your divorce, your spouse’s divorce attorney, or the judge on social media, it can get back to the “other side” or the judge and it can paint a bad picture of you. Additionally, we do not recommend discussing your divorce on social media as this can get back to your spouse, cause a lot of resentment, and complicate your divorce proceeding.

Proper Social Media Etiquette

Even if you block your spouse, their family and friends, one of your friends can still screenshot a post and send it to your spouse. To err on the side of caution, it’s very important that you are careful about posting to social media during your divorce.

1. Don’t change your Facebook status to “single” until your divorce is final.
2. Do not discuss your divorce on social media, period.
3. Do not post anything you don’t want the judge to see.
4. Do not badmouth your spouse on social media.
5. Do not post pics of you drinking, partying, or dating someone new until after the divorce is final.
6. Do not post pics of you spending money on unnecessary items or expensive trips during your divorce proceeding.
7. When in doubt, don’t post!

If you’re afraid that it will be too difficult to curb yourself on social media, our advice is to take a break from social media until your divorce is final. Or, you can comment on others’ posts, but avoid posting anything yourself until you’re officially divorced.

Next: How Does Adultery Impact Spousal Support in California?

Contact Arnold Law Group, APC for all of your divorce and family law needs.