Guides
How to export, print, organize and present text messages and chats, each with links to the official rules. General information, not legal advice.
Exporting and printing
- How to print text messages for courtA practical checklist for turning texts and chats into a clean, complete, page-numbered printout you can hand to a judge, with links to the official rules.
- How to print iPhone text messages (iMessage and SMS) for courtYour options for getting iPhone Messages conversations onto paper for court: screenshots, desktop export tools like iMazing, and building a clean PDF.
- How to print Android text messages for courtExport SMS and MMS from any Android phone with a free backup app and turn them into a dated, page-numbered PDF for court, without uploading your messages.
- How to print text messages from a Samsung Galaxy for courtFree ways to get Samsung Messages and Google Messages threads off a Galaxy phone and into a court-ready PDF: screenshots, XML backup and a numbered transcript.
- How to export a WhatsApp chat for courtUse WhatsApp’s own Export chat feature on iPhone or Android, keep the original file, and turn it into a numbered transcript with the file’s SHA-256 hash.
- How to turn a WhatsApp chat into a PDF on iPhoneExport a WhatsApp chat on iPhone with Export Chat, save it to Files, and convert the _chat.txt or ZIP into a clean, numbered PDF in your browser.
- How to turn a WhatsApp chat into a PDF on AndroidExport a WhatsApp chat on Android (More options › More › Export chat) and convert the text file or ZIP into a page-numbered PDF with timestamps.
- Including WhatsApp photos, voice notes and documents in a court PDFWhat WhatsApp’s “Include media” option really exports, why some photos are missing, and how to show images inline with file names and SHA-256 hashes.
- How to convert an SMS Backup & Restore XML file to PDFOpen an SMS Backup & Restore .xml file in your browser, pick one conversation, and get a dated, numbered PDF with UTC offsets, MMS photos and redaction.
- How to turn an iPhone Messages CSV export into a court-ready PDFConvert an iMazing CSV export of iPhone SMS/iMessage conversations into a numbered PDF with a cover page, hash and optional Bates numbers.
- Screenshots or an exported transcript: which should you use in court?The strengths and weaknesses of screenshots and full chat exports as evidence, and why many people bring a transcript plus a few key screenshots.
- How to organize screenshots of text messages for courtOrder, label and number text-message screenshots so a judge can follow them, and know when to switch to a full, page-numbered transcript instead.
Presenting messages in court
- How to present text messages in family courtPractical steps for preparing co-parenting texts and chats for a custody, divorce or protective-order hearing, with links to official bundle rules.
- Using text messages as evidence in small claims courtHow to prepare texts and WhatsApp chats for a small claims hearing: what to print, how many copies, and how to explain where they came from.
- Exhibit labels, cover pages and page numbers for message evidenceHow to label message exhibits, what to put on a cover page, and why “Page X of Y” numbering matters. With official examples from UK and California rules.
- Bates numbering for text messages and chat exportsWhat Bates numbers are, when to use them for message evidence, how to pick a prefix and starting number, and how they differ from page numbers.
- How to redact phone numbers and personal data in message exhibitsWhat U.S. federal rules require you to redact in court filings, how to redact text-message exhibits properly, and how to avoid redactions that can be undone.
- Timestamps and time zones in text-message evidenceWhy WhatsApp exports have no time zone, how SMS backups store exact instants, and how to present message times so nobody can misread them.
Evidence rules (US and UK)
- Authenticating text messages under Federal Rule of Evidence 901What “authentication” means for texts and chats under FRE 901, the examples the rule lists, and practical ways people support it. General information only.
- What a SHA-256 hash proves, and doesn’t, for message evidencePlain-English explanation of SHA-256 hash values, how courts’ rules describe them, how to verify one yourself, and the limits of what a hash shows.
- The “best evidence” rule and printouts of text messagesHow Federal Rules of Evidence 1001–1003 treat printouts of electronic messages as originals or duplicates, and what that means for a transcript.
- Are text messages hearsay? A plain-English overviewA careful overview of how the federal hearsay definitions apply to texts, including the opposing-party statement rule. Not legal advice; get help for your case.
- Text messages as evidence in California: key Evidence Code sectionsCalifornia Evidence Code sections on writings, authentication (1400–1401), secondary evidence (1521) and computer printouts (1552–1553), in plain English.
- Text messages as evidence in Florida: authentication basicsWhat Florida’s Evidence Code § 90.901 says about authentication, and practical steps for preparing texts and WhatsApp chats for a Florida hearing.
- WhatsApp messages and texts as evidence in England and WalesExhibit and bundle rules for message evidence in England and Wales: CPR Practice Direction 32, PD 31B on electronic documents, and Family PD 27A e-bundles.
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