Can text messages be used as evidence in court?
Short answer
In Quebec, the law allows a written document, a photograph, an audio or video recording, an object or testimony to be presented to the court. The evidence still has to be relevant, respect fundamental rights such as privacy, and not breach professional secrecy.
In detail
JuridiQC lists the forms of evidence that are admissible in separation and divorce matters: “A person's testimony, A written document (e.g. a contract, a payment receipt, etc.), A photograph, An audio or video recording, An object.” Text messages and emails fall into the document category.
Two caveats. First, admissibility is not automatic: the judge can exclude inadmissible evidence if the opposing party objects, in particular where it was obtained in breach of a fundamental right.
Second, you have to be able to establish that the document is what it purports to be and that it has not been altered. An isolated screenshot, with no context, no date and no full conversation, is easy to challenge. Keeping the message in its entirety and being able to show where it came from changes the value of the evidence.
What to document
The whole conversation rather than an excerpt, with the dates and times visible and the identity of the people involved. Note where the message is originally stored (which device, which application) and keep the original as well as the copy. Also keep attachments and, for photos, the date they were taken. A dated, complete and unaltered file is far stronger than a pile of screenshots.
Put your facts in writing, free. Writing your version down early, keeping your documents dated and preparing your questions for a lawyer: the tool is there to document, never to advise.
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Official sources
- JuridiQC — Divorce or separation proceedings: what you need to know about evidence
- Éducaloi — Evidence in court
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What this page is not
This is general legal information about the law of Quebec and Canada, dated and sourced. It is not legal advice, not a strategy, and not a prediction about the outcome of a case. In Quebec, only lawyers and notaries may give legal advice (Act respecting the Barreau du Québec, ss. 128 and 133). Laws and amounts change: the official source always prevails over us.