Great, great question.
First, fairly and accurately. Do not selectively cite the other parents communications with you and with others. If you do that, your credibility suffers.
Second, relevantly. So many parents try to demonize the other parent by providing courts with silly and irrelevant evidence. Things like: a parent admitting to drinking alcohol—just drinks alcohol, not abuses alcohol, the other parent acknowledging that he/she legally and lawfully owns or shoots firearms. Who cares? Document communications that are relevant to the issues of parental fitness, and of child custody and parent-time.
Third, admissibly. You have to ensure that the form of the records of communications between you and the other parent or between the other parent and others are presented in uniform that is authenticated and admissible as evidence by the court.
Fourth, manageably. Because it’s so easy to store documents now, some parents believe that by flooding the court with in some cases hundreds or even thousands of pages worth of communications between the parents or between one parent and someone else are going to win the case by virtue of sheer volume alone. Thus, it is best to have relevant communications between you and the other parent recorded in written form. Courts are overwhelmed with work and don’t have much time or patience to listen to audio or sound and visual recordings. This is not to say that audio and video recordings are not admissible and will never be considered by a court, but any communications between you and the other parent that you want the court to consider would best be presented in written form whenever possible. So when it comes time to present the court with documentation of communication between you and the other parent, curate what you present to the court carefully and judiciously. Take care to present no more and no less than what will be probative and persuasive.
Utah Family Law, LC | divorceutah.com | 801-466-9277
