If you’re heading into divorce, then you might be concerned about how your character will come under attack. After all, many marriage dissolutions devolve into mudslinging, some of which could be relevant in your case, especially if issues of marital wrongdoing will have an impact on the court’s determination of key legal issues like spousal support and child custody. Before stepping into court, then, you need to have a sound strategy in place for countering your spouse’s assertions.
That can be a difficult task to undertake on your own. Given the breadth of the applicable standard in divorce and custody cases, the court is free to consider pretty much any evidence that it deems relevant to its determination. How, then, do you know which steps you have to take to protect your interests?
Tips for protecting yourself from personal attacks in your divorce case
Regardless of the legal issues in play, you need to be prepared to counter personal attacks. Effectively doing so will not only help shield you from a bad outcome, but it can also dampen the emotional blow experienced when your spouse tries to lay into you about your prior acts. Here are some tips you may want to utilize in your case to protect yourself and your interests as fully as possible:
- Set the record straight: Your spouse might drag up embarrassing facts from your past to try to paint you in a bad light. But in their attempt to do so, they could misconstrue the facts in a way that paints an unfair picture. By using witness testimony and documentary evidence, you can contextualize the event in question and clarify any misunderstandings or outright lies. This will give the judge a better idea of how to view the evidence that’s been presented.
- Use the rules of evidence: Not all evidence is admissible. Yet, it’s up to you to raise valid objections to block certain evidence from being admitted against you. For example, if your spouse testifies to something that their friend told them, then that’s likely going to constitute hearsay. With a strong objection, you can most likely block that testimony from being admitted into evidence.
- Prepare yourself: There’s a good chance that you’ll be deposed in the run up to the trial in your divorce. Before you give any kind of statement, though, you need to be prepared to answer the questions that are likely to be posed. So, think through where you’re most vulnerable and where your spouse is most likely to hit you, then carefully formulate and rehearse answers that are truthful but that still protect you.
- Shift the focus: Even if you can’t prevent harmful evidence from being used against you, there are still ways to mitigate its impact. One of them is to simply refocus the court’s attention on the issue at hand. For example, if your spouse presents evidence that you’re behind on your credit card bills, then you might object as to relevance if the issue at hand is child custody, arguing that the minute details of your financial standing are immaterial to your ability to safely care for your child.
Don’t get steamrolled in your divorce
It’s oftentimes tempting to give in during divorce to avoid conflict and speed up the process. But doing so could put you at a severe disadvantage as you move into the next phase of your life. That’s why now is the time to think through your marriage dissolution legal strategy. By doing so, you can gain confidence and implement tactics aimed at securing the outcome that you want and deserve. Hopefully then you’ll be able to successfully lay the foundation for the next chapter of life that you envision for yourself.