My headline may seem extreeme, but I promise that if you are not careful, Facebook will cause havock in your divorce. That picture of you having drinks downtown with friends to celebrate a birthday….. can be brought up in a custody proceeding. That nasty comment you posted to a friend’s page while venting about your soon to be ex…. will get back to him/her and may sabotage settlement negotiations. Worse yet, it could be viewed by your children.
I could go on and on about the cases I have seen torn apart by imprudent Facebook postings. If you think your spouse will not see the post simply because you have un-friended them, think again. They will, and it will be brought up in the least flattering light, at the most critical time. If you truly must continue to maintain an active presence on Facebook during your divorce, make certain you screen your pics and posts so only the most positive image is portrayed. Or better yet….. hang out in Farmville, nobody will be looking for you there.
I actually considered using my ex’s wall posts that showed how many hours a day (and way way into the night) she played Farmtown as a basis for neglect when seeking parenting time in my divorce settlement. I think there are a lot of subtle ways you could build a case from Facebook posts. It’s essentially a public diary. Thankfully she was reasonable and we were able to work out a schedule…. but to this day I have a file with an entire year of her Facebook wall posts available to pull out and use if it were necessary.