Last week in our Columbus Custody & Visitation Law Blog, we wrote about a child custody battle that erupted after a woman discovered, via a photo posted on Facebook, that her husband had married another woman.

That case, though unusual, illustrates a new trend in family law cases--the use of evidence found on social media accounts. Those who are going through divorce, child custody or child support proceedings in Ohio should be careful about what information is available on their social media accounts. These cases do include a certain amount of personal scrutiny, and you do not want contradictory or negative information about yourself to be gleaned from Facebook posts, blog entries or other widely available online communications.

A 2010 survey of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers revealed that 81 percent of divorce attorneys have utilized evidence pulled from social networking sites during divorce proceedings. Most often this evidence is from Facebook, but information has been taken from MySpace, Twitter and other sites as well.

There have been many reports of future ex-spouses using photos, status updates or wall posts in order to contradict the other parties need or responsibility to pay child support or alimony. Additionally, some parents have tried to use or even manipulate information on social media websites to prove that the other parent is unfit.

It is important to discuss these matters with your family law attorney, because judges accept this type of evidence on a case-by-case basis. Some people might be wise to disable their social media accounts during proceedings. Others should follow common sense practices, whether they are getting divorced, seeking child custody or simply going about their lives as usual:

These include:

• Be careful who you allow to view information on your accounts. This includes who you allow to be your friend or follow you. There have been cases where an ex-spouse creates a fake profile in an attempt to gain information about their ex.

• Utilize privacy controls so that only people that you want to see your posts can do so.

• Remember that almost everything you do on these sites is public information, even if you only allow your friends to view your pages. As such, make an effort to present yourself in your best light. One guideline may be that if you would be embarrassed if your boss, parents or children viewed something you've posted, you should think twice about posting it.

Source: The Legal Intelligencer, "Facebook Has Become a Factor for Pa. Family Law Cases," Ben Present, Jan. 31, 2012

Source: Forbes, "How Not To Use Facebook To Get Custody Of Your Kids," Kashmir Hill, Nov. 18, 2011