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Cellphone evidence used in more divorce cases

On Behalf of | Feb 24, 2012 | Divorce

Cellphones have become a part of daily life, so it is no surprise that cellphones have become important in divorce proceedings. A recent survey found that 92 percent of divorce lawyers have seen a dramatic increase in the number of divorce cases using cellphone evidence in the last three years.

Cellphones are able to store potentially vital evidence in divorce cases. Text messages, e-mails and even Facebook posts are being used against spouses during divorce court. Text messages can be the most valuable pieces of evidence, because unlike e-mails, they are composed at the spur of the moment and depict a spouse’s true emotions and feelings.

According to the survey, text messages made up 62 percent of the evidence taken from cellphones. E-mails on smartphones made up 23 percent, phone numbers and call histories were 13 percent and GPS and Internet search histories stored on cellphones made up 1 percent each.

The survey found that cellphones allow spouses to keep track of each other. Spouses who seem to always have their cellphone on them, even in the bathroom, makes the other spouse think they are hiding something.

Cellphones and text messaging have become a main source of communication for many relationships and have provided a vital source of information that can be used as evidence against spouses going through divorce.

According to the survey, divorce lawyers think this type of evidence will only increase in divorce cases due to technological advances in cellphones, including smartphones that not only send messages and e-mails but can also capture videos and pictures.

Source: Today, “Divorce lawyers see more phone evidence, especially texts,” Athima Chansanchai, Feb. 10, 2012

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