Protection for Invasions of Conversational and Communication Privacy by Electronic Surveillance in Family, Marriage, and Domestic Disputes Under Federal and State Wiretap and Store Communications Acts and the Common Law Privacy Intrusion Tort

The legality of electronic surveillance of conversations and accessing of e-mail is complicated. Several legal institutions are implicated by these activities. Section I of this article identifies the values that are at stake when electronic surveillance is employed in marriage and custodial disputes. Section II examines the legality of electronic surveillance in domestic disputes under state and federal wiretap and stored communications acts and the common law privacy intrusion tort.

Section III examines the extent to which the fruits of violations of wiretap and stored communications acts or the privacy intrusion tort are excluded from divorce and custody proceedings. Section IV examines the availability of protective orders and other legal tools which minimize the scope of legal electronic surveillance and provide some protection against invasions of privacy to innocent participants of conversations or communications that are acquired in legal intrafamily surveillance.