The role of social media platforms has evolved from being a space for people to simply connect to a virtual bulletin board where they share every detail of their lives. It’s become a place where individuals feel more comfortable expressing their opinions and concerns and seek immediate solutions through posts. While the pursuit of social validation may offer a sense of reward, it can inadvertently impact the outcome of ongoing legal matters, such as a personal injury case.
The type of posts a victim likes, comments, or shares can be used as evidence against them, leading to unfair settlements. To defend one’s claims, it is essential to understand your limitations when using social media, ensuring your recreational scrolls do not affect the outcomes of your case.
How Social Media Content Can Be Used Against You
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Disproving Your Claims
A drawback of using social media while facing a personal injury case is disproving personal injury claims about your injuries. Suppose the victim casually posts a photo or video engaging in activities that require physical strength, such as exercising, travelling, partying, etc. In such a case, the opposing party may use them as evidence to prove that your injuries are not as severe as claimed.
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Public Perception and Credibility
Misunderstanding what is shared on social media often leads to doubts about an injured person’s reliability. A casual image of the victim smiling at a family gathering proves they are not experiencing pain or emotional suffering.
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Evidence for the Defense
Some insurance companies and defence lawyers use claimants’ social media profiles to discover information that can weaken their cases. They use public content, tagged posts, and comments to dispute the degree of existing injuries and the actual level of pain victims suffer.
Compromised Privacy Settings
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Misconceptions About Privacy
Most people think their privacy is safeguarded when they make their social media accounts private. However, legal organizations can access private posts during discovery procedures regardless of the settings.
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Friends and Connections
Claims adjusters and defence lawyers can access all posts that claimants restrict and see everything shared by a claimant’s friends, tagged photos and interactions on public pages.
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Court-Ordered Acces
Judicial authorities may issue orders asking claimants to share access to their social media accounts if their content is relevant to the case. This includes going through your private messages, posts, and photos.
Best Practices for Social Media During a Personal Injury Case
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Avoid Posting About the Incident
Avoid posting any information about the accident, injuries or ongoing judicial procedures. Such posts can provide evidence that may go against the claimant.
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Do Not Discuss the Case
Commenting on settlement discussions, lawyers, and opposing counsel should be avoided as such statements can be misinterpreted.
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Limit Social Media Activity
Social media engagement should be limited to reduce the chance of sharing any damaging posts. A brief break from social media is the most secure solution.
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Adjust Privacy Settings
An additional security measure can be achieved by keeping your accounts private and tracking tagged content and friend requests. However, it does not guarantee complete security.
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Educate Friends and Family
Claimants should warn their loved ones about the potential risks of posting or tagging them in their content. Posts intended to be helpful might damage legal claims, presenting facts contrary to injury statements.
How Lawyers Can Use Social Media to Strengthen or Weaken a Case
For the Plaintiff
Social media enables personal injury lawyers to present proof that shows how accident injuries alter the lives of their clients. Posts depicting events a person misses and images of mobility issues and pain-related restrictions provide evidence.
For the Defense
Defence lawyers keep a frequent eye on claimants’ social media activities to discover inconsistencies between their injury claims and online interactions. Even posts with no connection to the legal case may be used to challenge its validity.
Importance of Legal Advice
Filing personal injury claims requires legal guidance to handle complicated judicial procedures, determine the worth of financial compensation, and interact with insurance organizations. Personal injury lawyers protect their clients’ rights and help them fight for appropriate compensation for their injuries.
MacIsaac Gow LLP specializes in personal injury law, handling various cases, including slip and fall injuries, motor vehicle accidents, and disability claims. With years of experience in this field, our team provides personalized legal solutions, extending compassionate support to help clients achieve fair compensation.
Legal and Ethical Implications of Social Media in Personal Injury Cases
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Admissibility of Social Media Evidence
Courts permit social media evidence when it directly relates to case proceedings. All content shared by claimants is treated as evidence.
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Avoiding Destruction of Evidence
People should not remove social media posts from their accounts, as doing so can be seen as tampering with evidence and result in legal penalties. Instead, they should seek advice from lawyers before modifying their social media platforms.
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Protecting Your Rights
Working alongside their lawyers enables claimants to receive protection for their legal rights throughout the judicial proceedings. Legal guidance helps avoid unnecessary trouble and achieve better results in personal injury cases.
Conclusion
Social media can be a maker or breaker in personal injury case outcomes. Legal representatives from both the defence and the plaintiff can use social media posts as evidence to challenge credibility and lower the compensation amount. Victims must be cautious about what they post, like or comment, even prevent getting tagged in a friend’s post or accepting unknown friend invites to safeguard their claim.
Have you or your loved ones faced any such unfortunate incident? Our personal injury lawyers can help you build a strong case, ensuring you receive fair compensation. Schedule a free consultation at MacIsaac Gow LLP to discuss your case.
Key to Your Legal Success