# Question about obtaining info for lawsuit **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 11, 2010, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-obtaining-info-for-lawsuit/546328 "2010-07-11T21:12:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![bookaholic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/dec6dc/32.png) [@bookaholic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bookaholic)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-obtaining-info-for-lawsuit/546328/1 "2010-07-11T21:12:08Z")
So my friend (really) is about to be involved in a rather sticky divorce situation. One of those deals in which her husband’s family is very wealthy, and she has nothing of her own. She did not sign a pre-nup. She found out about his exploits when she became suspicious and began snooping into her husband’s emails and discovered that he has been carrying on an affair for more than two years. It consists of love notes and general references to their having spent time together. She also found references to his having recently obtained a lawyer and it appears that he is about to pounce. Since she obtained this information by going into his files, is it considered illegal, and not of use when trying to whallop him in the lawyer’s office? What other sorts of info are useful in a situation like this one, and what course of action should she now take? Her name is not on the deed to their home, and there are no other recorded assets of hers. Thanks for your help, my people. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-obtaining-info-for-lawsuit/546328/2 "2010-07-11T21:21:36Z")
My suggestion is go down to the local bar association and talk to them. I believe most of them employ law students as interns and can answer questions for free and point her in the right direction. ---
**Author:** ![bookaholic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/dec6dc/32.png) [@bookaholic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bookaholic)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-obtaining-info-for-lawsuit/546328/3 "2010-07-11T21:43:34Z")
Yes, thank you. I just wanted to know what to tell her right now, as she is freaking out. ---
**Author:** ![drachillix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/48db29/32.png) [@drachillix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drachillix)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-obtaining-info-for-lawsuit/546328/4 "2010-07-11T22:09:29Z")
> [@bookaholic](#): > > Yes, thank you. I just wanted to know what to tell her right now, as she is freaking out. #1 She needs a lawyer, he will guide her to her best options. IANAL but I am a computer guy, the contents of a computer are not generally considered private from a spouse or member of the household and could be monitored/dug through by anyone in the home and have it be perfectly legal. IF there is any doubt as to the admissability of said information as evidence in a courtroom situation, screenshots and witnesses are helpful. Right now the simple fact that she knows which way the wind is blowing is a huge bonus. Better that so she can avoid getting into any deeper financial entanglements with this guy like new home purchase/refinance, starting a business, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Ionizer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/5daacb/32.png) [@Ionizer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ionizer)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-obtaining-info-for-lawsuit/546328/5 "2010-07-11T22:27:03Z")
IANAL - but if I were a spouse in this situation, I would ASAP get all computers/data-storage devices owned by ‘family’ to a computer shop or similar and have all drives ‘cloned’ (or whatever copying all contents is called). It is easy to do, and having a pro shop do it likely keeps it more ‘admissible’ (or so I would think). At least it would show info up to that point, plus if it (data and/or devices) is ‘community property’, I’d own it as much as ‘he’ did/does. Do all the snooping possible, maybe even put some ‘bugs’ in the home to record things when not there personally! I have known folks doing divorce that hired private investigators who were told this exact thing (in the past). YMMV. Definitely need an attorney, but start taking pics of everything to show ownership/location of things…document, document, document! Oh - get bank statements/print-outs, too…pronto 😉 ---
**Author:** ![bookaholic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/dec6dc/32.png) [@bookaholic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bookaholic)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-obtaining-info-for-lawsuit/546328/6 "2010-07-11T22:29:04Z")
That’s kind of what I thought. What about privte detectives who snap pictures of people coming out of motels, etc…can they be used in court to incriminate someone or are things like that unusable because, unlike computer info, they have been actively obtained by an outside party?? ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2010, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-obtaining-info-for-lawsuit/546328/7 "2010-07-12T00:02:46Z")
> [@bookaholic](#): > > That’s kind of what I thought. What about privte detectives who snap pictures of people coming out of motels, etc…can they be used in court to incriminate someone or are things like that unusable because, unlike computer info, they have been actively obtained by an outside party?? This is exactly why you need to find a lawyer who practices in your jurisdiction rather than getting advice from random strangers on the internet. We don’t know the specifics in your case; a lawyer will. ---
**Author:** ![drachillix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/48db29/32.png) [@drachillix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drachillix)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2010, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-obtaining-info-for-lawsuit/546328/8 "2010-07-12T00:30:16Z")
> [@Ionizer](#): > > IANAL - but if I were a spouse in this situation, I would ASAP get all computers/data-storage devices owned by ‘family’ to a computer shop or similar and have all drives ‘cloned’ (or whatever copying all contents is called). Not gonna help much when its things like personal ads and gmail accounts. screenshots or better yet loading an app like spector to record everything would be far more useful. ---
**Author:** ![Rand\_Rover](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/db5fbb/32.png) [@Rand\_Rover](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rand_Rover)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2010, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-obtaining-info-for-lawsuit/546328/9 "2010-07-12T00:34:15Z")
She should hire a lawyer and rely on the lawyer’s advice. And this thread should be closed. ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2010, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-obtaining-info-for-lawsuit/546328/10 "2010-07-12T00:37:54Z")
Is she in a [community property](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Community_property) area? ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2010, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-about-obtaining-info-for-lawsuit/546328/11 "2010-07-12T01:16:36Z")
> [@Rand\_Rover](#): > > She should hire a lawyer and rely on the lawyer’s advice. And this thread should be closed. Excellent advice. Closed. Get a lawyer. **samclem** Moderator