How Can I Get Text Messages from My Ex Admitted into Court?
No parent wants to endure a child custody battle—there’s nothing more emotionally draining than handling matters that deeply affect you and your child’s life.
You want to be as prepared as possible to present the facts to the court; you’re not alone if you believe text messages from your ex will make your case stronger.
The Power of Text Messages in High-Conflict Custody Battles
Text messages are especially valuable to submit as evidence if you’re in a high-conflict divorce or child custody case with a narcissist.
Why? Text messages from your ex during a contentious situation will demonstrate their character to the court!
Can Text Messages Be Used as Evidence in Family Court?
Here’s the question: will the court recognize the text messages as evidence? It’s entirely possible with some strategy behind it!
Judge Anthony’s Advice for Admitting Text Messages in Court
Using text messages as evidence in your child custody case requires two critical steps: laying the foundation and authenticating the evidence.
Laying the Foundation and Authenticating Text Messages
For every piece of physical evidence, including text messages, you’ll need to do two things: lay the foundation and authenticate it.
During cross-examination, you’ll need to ask your ex if they recognize the document (text messages) and whether they wrote the messages.
Essentially, the witness needs to say they recognize the document and attest to what it is—that it is what it purports to be.
It seems simple: you show them the text message, ask if they recognize it, and ask them what it is.
The Challenge of Dealing with a Narcissistic Ex
For this to work, you’ll need your ex to actually admit they recognize the text messages and wrote them. It seems simple… until you have a narcissistic ex who lies to the court.
What to Do if Your Ex Denies Writing the Text Messages
Whether you suspect your ex will lie to the court or not, use Judge Anthony’s strategy to better set yourself up for success in your child custody case.
Judge Anthony’s Strategy for Cross-Examination
Judge Anthony advises: “Start your cross-examination with positive or neutral text exchanges—interactions that involve things like exchange times.
Get them to admit to those facts (specifically that it’s their phone number, and they sent those texts).
Later in the cross-examination, you bring up the negative texts, and if they try to deny it, you bring up the old ones they admitted to already.”
This is a crucial tactic, especially in high-conflict child custody cases, and is often misunderstood by non-attorneys and even some attorneys.
If you want favorable evidence in front of the judge, understanding and implementing this strategy is essential.
Focus on What Will Impact Your Case
If you’re not going to be able to get it into court, you shouldn’t concern yourself with it.
Only worry about potential evidence that will help or hurt your case.
Frequently Asked Questions:
1. Can text messages be used as evidence in a child custody case?
Yes, text messages can be used as evidence in a child custody case, but they must be properly authenticated and presented to the court.
This involves laying the foundation during cross-examination, where your ex must acknowledge that they recognize the messages and confirm they sent them.
This process is critical in demonstrating your ex’s character, especially in high-conflict custody cases with a narcissist.
2. What happens if my ex denies writing the text messages?
If your ex denies writing the text messages, you can use a strategic approach suggested by Judge Anthony.
Start by cross-examining your ex on neutral or positive exchanges, like confirming exchange times, to get them to admit to certain facts.
Once they’ve admitted to sending these messages, you can introduce more negative ones.
If they try to deny those, you can reference the earlier admissions to discredit their denial.
3. How can I best prepare to use text messages in court?
To best prepare, ensure that you have a well-organized set of text messages and a strategy for presenting them during cross-examination.
Judge Anthony suggests focusing on messages your ex will likely admit to first before introducing unfavorable evidence.
Additionally, using tools like the Court Clerk app can help organize your evidence, making the process more efficient and effective.
Conclusion
Text messages from your ex can get admitted to court if you play your cards right.
When dealing with a narcissist in court, you should try to predict their moves before they happen.
Judge Anthony’s tactic for getting text messages from your ex admitted into court plays off the assumption that your ex will try denying any unfavorable evidence.
Even if your ex doesn’t end up lying in court, it’s best to enter the courtroom as prepared as possible.
If you’re looking for a way to organize your evidence, check out the Court Clerk app.
