Le text d'amour...messages of love that prove adultery

Passionate text messages to mistresses and lovers can now be used as evidence in a divorce in France after a court ruling.

Experts say the recent ruling by the Supreme Court to accept texts as proof of adultery will make it easier to get a divorce.

French people often had to wait for years to escape a marriage if they could not prove that their spouses were misbehaving or mistreating them.

Text messages have long been accepted as official proof in murder and other criminal trials in France, and the new decision extends the practice into family law. Emails are also accepted as evidence in trials.

Getting a divorce can be a lengthy and painful procedure in France. If the spouses fail to agree to separate by mutual consent, those filing for divorce have to prove that the spouse has misbehaved.

If the judge is not convinced, a divorce will be pronounced only after two years of living separately.

Lawyers hailed the ruling. "It's a very good decision," said Paris divorce attorney Laurence Mayer.

The decision overturned a 2007 ruling by a Lyon court, which had declared that using phone exchanges in court was a breach of privacy.