Should You Post on Social Media While Pursuing a Personal Injury Lawsuit?
Over the past two decades, social media has come to play an important role in the day-to-day lives of Canadians. In Ontario alone, nearly 70% of citizens are active on at least one social media platform. Family and friends stay connected, sharing pictures, posts, and chatting over dozens of different platforms.
While social media can be a valuable tool, there are negative aspects to its use, highlighting how important it is to be aware of what you are sharing online.
Courts Can Use Social Media Posts
The law has worked to keep up with the growth of social media and today, it’s common for requests to be made to access a plaintiff’s social media. In many instances, requests don’t even need to be made because the plaintiff’s social media is public for all to see.
So how can this impact a personal injury lawsuit?
Essentially, social media posts can legally be seen as statements. For example, if a plaintiff claims that they are unable to continue with their normal everyday activities and hobbies because of a neck injury but then post a picture playing hockey on their social media, this could be used as evidence against them.
How Can Plaintiffs Protect Themselves On Social Media?
When pursuing a personal injury lawsuit it’s wise to take steps to ensure that social media doesn’t hurt the case. While it’s not necessary to cut out all social media during litigation, it is wise to exercise extreme caution.
- Never post information about conversations that took place with an attorney.
- Review and change privacy settings. Be sure to enable the ability to review any tagged photos.
- Remove any “friends” or connections that aren’t directly known or recognized.
- Don’t accept new friend requests from anyone who isn’t directly known.
Again, be very mindful of anything that is posted.
Contact a Cambridge, ON Personal Injury Attorney
If you or a loved one have been injured in an accident, contact the legal team at Hilborn and Konduros for a no-cost consultation. Call (519) 658-6341.
