Parents film children to win custody battles in bitter divorce cases
Desperate parents are increasingly resorting to filming or recording their children in an attempt to win custody in bitter divorce cases, lawyers have said.
In an effort to gather evidence against their ex-partners parents are using mobile phones and tablets to record their children.
But lawyers have warned that the tactic can backfire, with recorded interrogation leaving children "exceptionally distressed"or causing the parent to lose their case.
Such actions were almost unheard of five years ago but have increased rapidly to the point where lawyers say they are seeing cases on a weekly basis.
Some recordings are done openly, with parents using phones to record their own conversations with children, while others are done covertly in an attempt to gather evidence.
Increased access to digital recording devices has led to parents attempting to create their own evidence, lawyers said. One major law firm said many of their clients were coming to meetings already equipped with recordings.
Cara Nuttall, a partner at JMW Solicitors, said: “Many often fail to recognise how harmful such behaviour can be, or how negatively it can impact on their case.
“Their aim is to try to ‘prove’ to the court the child’s wishes and feelings that they prefer to spend time with them or don’t like being with the other parent.
“Smartphones and other technology make it extremely easy to record a child, and many see this as the best way to prove their point. But it is rarely the answer and the manner in which it is done tends to do more harm than good.” Parents risk having the local authority intervene because of concerns for a child's welfare or to restrict the amount of time they can spend with the child.
They also risk breaking data protection laws, especially if the recordings also capture other children. Last year a father lost custody of his daughter after sewing bugs into her school blazer in an attempt to listen in to her meetings with her social worker.
In a ruling Mr Justice Peter Jackson said: "It is almost always likely to be wrong for a recording device to be placed on a child for the purpose of gathering evidence in family proceedings, whether or not the child is aware of its presence. "This should hardly need saying, but nowadays it is all too easy for individuals to record other people without their knowledge."
He awarded custody to the child's mother, who had described the father's actions as "unbelievable" and "really disturbing".
Lawyers said parents often thrust a phone in front of a child and ask them a "barrage" of questions which can leave them upset.
London-based solicitors Vardags said that courts had been "slow to accept video evidence", leading parents to take matters into their own hands.
Ayesha Vardag, president of the firm, said: "Parents filming themselves interrogating their child about the other’s parenting style is never a good thing, and often descends into putting words into their mouth. It harms the child’s welfare and gives the court nothing of value."
However, she added that video evidence can sometimes "provide an objective view of critical evidence" if parents manage to capture abusive or disruptive behaviour, for example at a handover.
