Follow these steps to print and save text messages for court.
How to use text messages as evidence in court. Quick Steps - Print text messages for court. Text messages arent automatically admissible in court. Courts generally require additional evidence confirming the texters identity.
However the law also requires that the prosecution authenticates the message or written text before it is allowed into evidence. Choose a contact whose text messages you want to save for court. Follow these steps to print text messages for court.
But where that occurs the texts may not be used to prove the truth of their contents. Pick a contact with text messages you need to print for court. You should not have hidden or deleted certain messages.
Select Print to print out text messages for court or trial. Can Text Messages Be Used as Evidence in a Criminal Trial. Select Export to save the text messages.
In this weeks two-minute tip Tisha explains how you can preserve your texts so they can be used in a court. Text message conversations must contain relevant admissible evidence and you must take steps to properly preserve the authenticity of the text messages or else you may not be able to use them as evidence. In fact not only are SMS text messages admissible as evidence in the Family Court and all other family law jurisdictions but so are emails Facebook posts Twitter tweets skype transcripts and YES even comments on our very own Family Law Express forum and any other electronic messaging that have become ubiquitous in the time of accessible mass communication.
As long as a text message is relevant not barred based on hearsay rules and can be authenticated then you can submit it as evidence. Backup an iPhone on your computer. The use of text messages is still a grey legal area and the laws vary from state to state.