Know Your Rights
A practical starter library: how to protect yourself, document reality, and avoid unforced errors when things get legal.
Paper trail that holds up
When things get messy, the person with organized records usually wins leverage. Keep it simple:
- Write down dates, times, locations, and who was present.
- Save texts/emails as screenshots + export when possible.
- Back up originals (cloud + external drive).
- Label everything like evidence: YYYY-MM-DD · Who · What.
This is a “calm under pressure” skill, not a legal trick.
Police contact basics
- Stay calm. Don’t volunteer extra stories.
- Ask if you’re free to leave. If yes — leave.
- If not, clearly say you want a lawyer before detailed questioning.
- Don’t consent to searches casually. Be respectful, but clear.
If you’re unsure in the moment, keep it short and ask for counsel.
Family court survival
- Show consistency: routines, stability, communication attempts.
- Keep messages boring: child-focused, factual, short.
- Bring a neat packet: timeline, exhibits, and 1-page summary.
Our Courtroom Toolkit has printables for this.
Next: the “Know Your Rights Library”
We’re building a library of short primers (5–10 min reads) with printable checklists.
- Stops & searches
- Recording calls & conversations (state-by-state)
- Protective orders: what to do first
- Evidence basics: screenshots, files, chain-of-custody
Want to prioritize a topic? Post in the forum and we’ll build it first.