Can checking your spouse’s phone or computer lead to criminal liability during divorce proceedings?
In family disputes, situations often arise where one party seeks to obtain additional information about the other spouse – reviewing phones, computers, emails, or social media accounts.
In practice, this is often justified as an attempt to establish the true circumstances or strengthen one’s position in divorce proceedings.
However, such actions may cross the boundaries of family law and become a matter of criminal law.
This exact situation was recently examined by the Supreme Court of Lithuania in criminal case No. 2K-45-697/2026.
In the case, a former spouse accessed the other spouse’s work computer and reviewed the information stored on it. Part of the obtained data was later used when providing information to authorities and during divorce proceedings.
However, the very act of accessing the computer became the basis for criminal proceedings. The courts found that the woman had unlawfully accessed an information system and thereby bypassed a computer security measure – the login password.
Ultimately, she was found guilty under Article 198¹(1) of the Criminal Code and was fined. The court also awarded non-pecuniary damages to the injured party.
In this case, the Supreme Court of Lithuania clearly emphasized an important principle: in the context of criminal liability, the decisive factor is not the technical complexity of the access method, but the fact of unauthorized access itself.
This case serves as an important reminder that technologies commonly used in family disputes – phones, computers, email accounts, and social media platforms – are legally treated as protected information systems.
As a result, attempts to gather evidence about a spouse may create additional legal consequences for the person collecting the information, ranging from civil liability to criminal proceedings.
We advise clients at all stages of family disputes – from the early escalation of conflict to representation in complex divorce, asset division, child custody, and other family law matters.
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