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April 12, 2023
The loss of a loved one is tragic. Healing from this type of loss can be a long process, and the pain can remain with you for the rest of your life. In the age of social media, many people choose to share their grief through these outlets. However, you need to be mindful of what you post on these platforms.
If you are attempting to recover compensation through a wrongful death lawsuit, you can be sure your social media is being monitored. The insurance company or the lawyers for the at-fault party will be looking there for anything they can use against you. At Zanes Law, we have seen how even seemingly irrelevant social media posts can harm a wrongful death case.
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When you are filing a wrongful death claim after the loss of a loved one, you can expect your whole life to come under a microscope. Whether you are attempting to recover from an insurance company or directly from a corporation or individual responsible for the death of your loved one, you can be confident that the opposing party is not going to want to pay you.
Instead, they will do everything they can to deny your insurance claim, defeat your lawsuit, or at least minimize the amount they owe. To accomplish this, there are a variety of tactics that will likely be used. There is a strong chance that a private investigator will follow you after you file your claim.
Beyond that, the most popular tool for surveillance in the modern age is social media networks, where investigators can easily keep tabs on your activity after a wrongful death if you choose to make it public. Even posts unrelated to the death of your loved one can potentially be used against you in your legal battle.
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There are a variety of ways in which a post on social media can harm your wrongful death claim. Types of posts that can most often damage your claim include any lighthearted posts or pictures of you smiling or seeming to enjoy life.
Posting these types of pictures or sharing funny memes or anything of that nature can make it difficult to recover pain and suffering damages. The opposition will argue that these types of posts suggest that you have not been deeply affected by the death and are not entitled to compensation for the grief you seem not to be experiencing.
Although everyone grieves in their own way, juries can be swayed by this type of “evidence” that you are not suffering. Furthermore, since these cases can take years to settle in some cases, you can still be in deep pain even if you display moments of happiness. Unfortunately, those moments can hurt your legal case if you share them on social media.
While setting your social media accounts to private can help protect you during a wrongful death case, there is still the possibility that the things you post could be used in court. Laws are always shifting and changing, especially when it comes to regulations over newer technologies.
While your private accounts are generally protected, there is certainly the possibility that an exception could be made in your case. These types of exceptions have been made on many occasions in the past.
While there is no guarantee that setting your accounts to private will protect you, it is still a valid precaution to take. Even if you don’t post anything after the death of your loved one, attempting to minimize the information investigators can find about you can be helpful.
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The best way to protect yourself from damaging your case due to social media activity is to stay off these platforms entirely until your legal case has concluded. You can never be entirely sure how a social media post may be twisted to be used against you.
In addition to not posting on your own account, you should request that your friends and family refrain from posting messages concerning you as well. You never know how far out the net will be cast by the investigator attempting to find harmful information on social media.
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If you must use social media after the death of a loved one, you should at least consult with a wrongful death attorney before you post. Your attorney can advise you on best practices for posts during this period that will help minimize your vulnerability.
An experienced attorney will know what investigators and opposing counsel are looking for when they view your social media accounts. Their advice can help you avoid giving the other side ammunition to use against you.
At Zanes Law Injury Lawyers, our team of wrongful death attorneys has seen how insurance companies and lawyers representing those responsible for wrongful deaths can use social media posts to deny or devalue a claim. We will work diligently to create counterarguments to any claims made by the defense regarding your social media posts.
Reach out to us today to schedule a free consultation with one of our Tucson wrongful death lawyers. You can contact us by phone, through our online contact form, or by utilizing our chat tool.
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