DIVORCE CAN MAKE SMART PEOPLE DO DUMB THINGS: NEVADA’S STATUTORY PROHIBITION ON THE SECRET RECORDATION OF TELEPHONE CALLS

DIVORCE CAN MAKE SMART PEOPLE DO DUMB THINGS: NEVADA’S STATUTORY PROHIBITION ON THE SECRET RECORDATION OF TELEPHONE CALLS
In perhaps no area of the law do well-intentioned people do more ill-advised things than in divorce proceedings. Parties can often act rashly in divorce litigation, particularly where highly contested and emotionally charged issues like child custody or marital infidelity exist. One of the more critical “need” areas for legal advice in this area relates to the perceived but misguided benefit one divorcing spouse may see in secretly recording telephone calls with the opposing spouse in order to memorialize that person’s incriminating, abusive, or otherwise inconsistent statements. The surreptitious recording of phone calls, however, is usually not well thought out, and is a dangerous trap for the unwary.
Nevada law generally prohibits the recordation of a telephone call by one party to a phone conversation unless all the parties to the phone conversation are aware of and consent to the recordation. See NRS 200.620, and Lane v. Allstate Insurance Co., 114 Nev. 1176 (1998). In the context of civil litigation – including a divorce action – Nevada is termed a “two-party consent” jurisdiction when it comes to assessing the legality and validity of recorded phone calls. Moreover, the contents of any illegal recordings are clearly inadmissible in evidence, and are subject to exclusion if their admission is sought. Most critically, a willful and knowing violation of the prohibition on recording phone conversations potentially subjects the violator to prosecution for a category D felony, and the specter of substantial criminal penalties. So, while a litigant may be entirely well-intentioned in his or her desire to capture and/or preserve important evidence in a divorce case by secretly recording one or more phone calls, the conduct itself is illegal and should be uniformly avoided during a Nevada divorce.
The Las Vegas divorce attorneys at Pecos Law Group can offer specific advice regarding this and other family law related issues.