Are text messages admissible in family court?

Yes. The family court can consider messages, emails and other written communication where they are relevant. Relevance and presentation matter more than volume.

Can I record phone calls with my ex?

Recording a conversation you are part of is not automatically unlawful, but whether the family court will admit it is a separate question and covert recordings are often viewed poorly. Recording a child is strongly discouraged. Seek advice before relying on a recording.

How should I present screenshots to the court?

Print them in date order, keep the timestamp and sender visible, number each page, and add a short index that says what each message shows and why it matters.

Using messages as evidence in family court

7 min read · Last reviewed 1 August 2026

Almost every parent arrives with a phone full of messages. Very few arrive with evidence. The difference is selection and presentation, and it is the single biggest improvement most litigants in person can make to their case.

Start with relevance, not volume

A judge reading 300 pages of screenshots will not find your best three messages. You have to find them. For each message you want to include, ask what fact it proves and whether that fact is one the court needs in order to decide something about your child.

Proves an agreement was made or broken
Shows a pattern of behaviour over time, not one bad day
Contradicts something the other parent has told the court
Evidences an allegation you have already raised

Messages that only show the other parent being unpleasant to you, with no effect on the child, rarely help. They often invite the court to see the conflict as mutual.

Collecting properly

1
Capture the context
Screenshot the messages either side of the one that matters. A single line out of context is easy to dismiss and easy to attack.
2
Keep the metadata visible
Sender name or number, date and time should be in the image. Crop nothing that identifies who said what and when.
3
Never edit
Do not annotate, highlight or blank out anything inside the image itself. Put your comments in a separate index.
4
Export where you can
WhatsApp can export a chat as a text file, which preserves the whole sequence and is harder to dispute than assembled screenshots.
5
Back it up somewhere safe
Phones get lost, broken and reset mid-proceedings. Keep a second copy off the device.

Presenting it to the court

The exhibit bundle

Messages are usually attached to a witness statement as an exhibit. Put them in strict date order, oldest first, number every page, and give the exhibit a reference such as "AB1". In your statement, refer to specific pages: "On 14 April the respondent cancelled contact (AB1, page 7)."

The index

A one page index in front of the messages, listing date, who sent it and what it shows, will do more for you than another fifty pages of screenshots. It shows the judge you have thought about relevance rather than handing over your phone.

Common mistakes

Filing everything and expecting the court to find the point
Screenshots with no date visible
Cherry-picking one line while the surrounding messages tell a different story, which is usually exposed
Including your own messages that you would rather the judge did not read, without acknowledging them
Sending documents directly to the judge instead of filing them properly and serving the other party

On that last point: assume everything you send will be read alongside everything you have ever sent. The most effective evidence strategy is usually to write messages today that you would be comfortable having read aloud in court in a year.

Common questions

Are text messages admissible in family court?: Yes. The family court can consider messages, emails and other written communication where they are relevant. Relevance and presentation matter more than volume.
Can I record phone calls with my ex?: Recording a conversation you are part of is not automatically unlawful, but whether the family court will admit it is a separate question and covert recordings are often viewed poorly. Recording a child is strongly discouraged. Seek advice before relying on a recording.
How should I present screenshots to the court?: Print them in date order, keep the timestamp and sender visible, number each page, and add a short index that says what each message shows and why it matters.