Can You Record Telephone Calls Legally?
As general questions go, this is probably one of the most general. Is it legal to record telephone calls? Well, yes, maybe, and no, depending on your circumstances.
Let’s start with yes. If you ask the other party or parties to the conversation for their permission to record, and they give you that permission, it’s legal. Of course this is not legal advice, and if you have any doubts, you should check with an attorney. But, as a rule, if all parties consent to the recording, then it’s within the law.
Where maybe comes in is when you know you’re recording, but no one else on the line knows. In some jurisdictions you may be okay, as long as one party to the phone recording knows and consents. But if you are planning to record a conversation secretly, you should get very good advice from an attorney with experience in this field, before you record the conversation.
“No” comes in when you’re taping someone else’s conversations, and no one being recorded knows it. That would, actually, qualify as an illegal wiretap in most cases. That would be a very bad thing. Even if you have the most ironclad of reasons, unless you’re authorized by someone who has the legal authority to okay something like that, secretly taping other people’s phone conversations is always going to have some very serious consequences if you’re caught.
If you need to record phone calls, the best way to make sure you’re within the law is to get the permission of the other party. If for some reason you are unable to do that, you should be very sure about the laws in your location as well as the other person’s location, and be prepared to defend your position to the other person, informally if not in court.
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