tampa divorce lawyer

Can you record your spouse’s phone calls?

Spying on your spouse’s behavior should not be your method of obtaining evidence. 

As a family law attorney, I often have cases where a client tells me that he or she has previously recorded phone calls evidencing their spouse’s behavior and wants to know whether or not they can use this as evidence. My general answer is no.

Under Florida law, recording your spouse without their knowledge is illegal. This includes hacking into your spouse’s phone or social media account, using GPS tracking devices, and even the use of hidden cameras and tape recorders. Using this type of evidence can subject individuals to civil and even criminal penalties.

However, Florida law does have some exceptions. With regard to social media, for example, if your spouse is “friends” with you on a social media account or his or her posts are public, any such posts may be used as evidence if you did not obtain this information by hacking into your spouse’s account. Likewise, text messages and voice mails sent by your spouse may also be used as evidence.

As always, the safest way to obtain evidence of your spouse’s behavior is to gain the information legally.

If you have concerns about which “spying” activities may or may not be permitted, or if you feel your spouse has illegally accessed your private information or require legal assistance in other areas of Family Law you may always contact Damien McKinney of The McKinney Law Group to discuss your case further. He can be reached by phone at 813-428-3400 or by e-mail at [email protected].