Phone Taps in a legal case??

[Yas786]

Right just a quick question really, something that me and a mate were discussing earlier today.

Now hes adamant that in a legal case ie someone suing someone for damages can legally get say a private investigator to tap someones phones and use that evidence to track a person down.

Im of the opinion that no u cant as you would need the other persons permission before using that evidence....

So whos right and whos wrong??.

 

[Yas786]

Cheers Dolph, just as i thought...

 

[Yas786]

Ok the main reason why i asked this question is because the other day a private investigator turned up at my door looking for my dad. Now my dad doesnt live at the house that me and my mum live at but his name is on the mortgage deeds although he has no interest in the house whatsoever, we even have a letter from his solicitors saying that.
Basically quite a few yrs ago in Canada before we came back here, he was being sued by someone for damages etc. Someone bought my dad and his partners company and made some massive losses and blamed my dad and his partner for these losses...said the books were dodgy etc etc when my dads partner was and is a certified accountant...something about misappropriation of funds etc. First time the case was thrown out but the guy appealed and won but by that time we had already settled in the UK. So this fella went after my dads partner and literally ruined him, left him bankrupt and seized all his assets etc.
So basically a long story short is that this guy is now after my dad and his assets and because his name is on the mortgage deeds they want half the house or his share. Which basically means i cannot sell the house till this is sorted out as im not willing to lose half my house etc. He has put a restriction on the house via the land registry and courts. My mum now has to go to court on 24 feb and prove to the judge that my dad has no interest in the house etc and get this damn restriction taken off.

Now i maybe paranoid but now and again my dad does ring me on the phone and i have seen him a few times in the past yr or so. So because these private investigators are getting paid quite a bit of money, its within their interests to find my dad through any possible means etc. So im just kinda worried that he may be tapping our phones without our consent etc and this may be in turn used against us in court.

So thats basically the story, dont want to go into too much detail tbh but its a very worrying time for me and my mum and shes under a lot of stress and tbh its the last thing i need to worry about really.

But thanks for the answers, i dont think he is tapping our phones but we cant be 100% sure that he isnt and therefore we no longer talk on the home phone about this case etc.

 

[Yas786]

Well, whether tapping is illegal or not, I certainly wouldn't suggest it might not happen. To do so would be incredibly naive.

Whether such information could be used in court may be besides the point though, because from that post, Spawn, it seems to me that these guys first objective is to simply find your dad and a tap may help achieve that. But in those circumstances, I'd be shocked to find an illegal tap could be used against you or your mum in court.

The best bet, though, is to get formal legal advice. The closest this thread has come may well be Sativa's comments.

Indeed and once again thank you mate for your info, we do have a lawyer who has taken the case for us. Im meeting with him on monday to discuss the ramifications of all this and see where it stands with us on a legal standpoint.
But we are being extra careful now with regards to telephone conversations etc etc. Better to be safe than sorry i guess