Advice is only as good as the person giving it, right? So it’s a no-brainer, then, that taking legal advice from a social networking site where fellow users may or — more likely — may not know anything about the law can be dicey.
Consider the recent case of a man who sought guidance from Reddit readers on a divorce. Reddit is a social networking site where visitors can comment on posts and vote for their favorites. According to the site, “Reddit stories are created by its users. Join the community, vote and change the world.”
The man, who goes by username “antons_key” on Reddit, had his world changed when he sought legal advice on beginning the divorce process with his then-wife. Acting on unsound advice he got from Reddit readers, antons_key visited some 30 divorce lawyers in his town. Discussing his case with these attorneys, even though he did not hire one, prevented his wife from using those attorneys because of the conflict of interest, thereby making her search for a lawyer unnecessarily difficult.
What those Reddit users did not count on was that his soon-to-be ex-wife would slap him with a motion for attorneys’ fees, citing, according to antons_key, “abuse of process, an attempt to deprive and interfere with justice, bad faith, and a bunch of other stuff.”
As if that wasn’t bad enough, antons_key then went back to Reddit, the very place that led him astray to begin with, and asked, “Is there something I can do to stop this?”
Yes, there is. Number one is to put the brakes on getting legal advice from anonymous social media users. We understand that you want quick, free advice. But you should seek it from people who know the difference between malfeasance and malice, alibi and alias. In other words, you want legal advice from legal professionals. Luckily, the Internet is full of good advice; you just have to know where to look.
Next step? Go back to one of those 30 lawyers and hire one before your wife does.
6 comments
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Marks Martin
There are number of ways to find the legal advisers online. Search through search engines, visit the directories or niche related directories. You will get the complete information of the lawyers to fit your requirements. Also try to consult with known ones.
Serge Duval
It's true that a forum usually isn't the most reliable source of information. People are going to share what they learned from their specific experience, and it may not apply to your situation at all. I hope the guy ended up going to a professional rather than to keep getting burned by his wife who obviously was using more than an internet forum. Interesting article, thanks for sharing!
Christophe Carlier
Thank you for sharing this information on legal advice. Divorce can be something very difficult to go through. I have had several friends go through a divorce and I know that it is very tough! It is important to find a good lawyer who you can trust to help you get through this step in your life. Like you said, we should not take legal advice from social networking sites because it may not be valid. We should ask those who we can trust and search online for a good divorce attorney. Thanks!
Esther Oakley
I agree that often times you shouldn't take advice from complete strangers. However, one of the best ways to find a lawyer, in my opinion, is through referrals. Taking the time to ask someone you trust if they have anyone that they have used and recommend can be a huge help.
skippydog
Yea the antons_key thing was FUBAR, but if you go pick 10 random questions you'll see that most of the time the advice is on point.