Is It Legal to Record a Phone Call in Arkansas? (2026)

Is it legal to record a phone call in Arkansas?

Yes. Arkansas is a one-party consent state. If you are taking part in a phone call or in-person conversation, your own consent is all the law requires to record it — you do not need to warn the other person, and you do not need their agreement. For a parent trying to keep an honest record of a difficult exchange with a co-parent, that means you are free to record any call you are on.

The statute and the exact citation

The rule comes from Ark. Code Ann. § 5-60-120, “Interception and recording.” The statute makes it unlawful to intercept a wire, landline, oral, telephonic, or wireless communication and to record or possess a recording of it, unless the person is a party to the communication or one of the parties has given prior consent to the interception and recording. In plain terms, being on the call yourself satisfies the statute on its own; you do not need the other person's sign-off.

Penalties for recording without the exception

Any violation of § 5-60-120 is a Class A misdemeanor in Arkansas, which carries up to one year in the county jail and a fine of up to $2,500. That penalty applies to someone who intercepts or records a private communication they are not a party to and without any participant's consent — not to a parent recording their own conversation. A recording made in violation of the statute is also generally treated as inadmissible in a criminal proceeding, which is one more reason the line between “participant” and “outsider” matters so much.

Notable exceptions worth knowing

Arkansas law carves out several categories that fall outside the statute entirely. It is not unlawful for a person acting under color of law — law enforcement in the course of their duties — to intercept a communication. Switchboard operators and employees of a telephone or telecommunications provider are also exempt when the interception happens in the normal course of their employment, as are FCC-licensed amateur radio operators. None of these apply to a parent recording their own calls, but they explain why the statute reads more broadly than the one-party rule alone might suggest. Arkansas courts have also recognized implied consent where a party knows recordings are routinely made and never objects, which can matter if a co-parenting arrangement already involves a recorded line.

Using a recording in an Arkansas custody case

Because a call you participated in was lawfully recorded, it is generally usable as evidence in an Arkansas family court matter. The judge still decides how much weight to give it, whether it is relevant to the issue in front of the court, and whether the way it was captured raises any fairness concerns — a recording chopped down to a single damaging line will draw far more scrutiny than a complete, unedited call. What the one-party exception will not cover is recording a conversation you are not part of, such as leaving a phone recording in a room your co-parent is speaking in without you. That is squarely outside the statute and can be both a crime and inadmissible.

The interstate caveat: when the other parent is out of state

Arkansas's one-party rule governs conduct under Arkansas law, but a growing share of co-parenting relationships span state lines. States including California, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania and Washington require all-party consent, and some courts apply whichever state's law is stricter when a call crosses a border. If your co-parent frequently calls from one of those states, a recording that is perfectly lawful on the Arkansas side could still raise a question on theirs. The simplest fix costs nothing: say at the start of the call that you are recording it, and the interstate question disappears.

How to document a call so it holds up

A lawful recording is only half the job; the other half is keeping it in a form nobody can credibly dispute. Preserve the original audio file exactly as it was captured, log the date and time and who was on the line, and resist the temptation to trim it down to “the good part” before showing your attorney — an edited clip undermines the very credibility you are trying to build. This is precisely the gap Copareo Secure Line is built to close: a private number that records, transcribes and time-stamps your co-parenting calls into a tamper-evident, court-ready archive, for a one-time $9.90 with no subscription to manage.

Frequently asked questions

Do I have to tell my co-parent I am recording our calls in Arkansas?

No. Arkansas requires the consent of only one party, and you count as that party when you are on the call. You are free to record without notice, though announcing it is always permitted and can make the recording easier to defend if it is ever challenged.

Is it legal to record a conversation I am not part of in Arkansas?

No. The exception in § 5-60-120 only covers communications you actually participate in, or where a participant has given prior consent. Recording other people's private conversation without either falls outside the exception and can be a Class A misdemeanor.

Can a secretly recorded call be used in an Arkansas custody case?

Generally yes, if you were a party to it, though the judge decides how it is weighed and whether it is admitted. Recordings get excluded far more often for being edited or missing context than for being unannounced.

What if my co-parent is often calling from an all-party consent state?

Arkansas itself only asks for your own consent, but some courts look to the stricter state's rule for a cross-state call. If that is a realistic scenario for your situation, announcing the recording removes the ambiguity entirely.

Can I video-record a custody exchange in Arkansas?

Arkansas's recording statute is written around wire, oral and electronic communications, and the one-party logic extends naturally to video with audio you are part of, such as filming a handoff you are physically present for. It does not extend to placing a hidden camera in a space to capture people who do not know you are recording and are not aware you are present, which raises separate privacy concerns beyond § 5-60-120. If in doubt, keep the camera visible, stay within your own custody time, and let the footage speak for the exchange itself rather than editing it down to a single moment.

Bottom line

In Arkansas, you may lawfully record a phone call or conversation you take part in, and a complete, unedited recording can support your case in family court. Keep the original file, log who was on the call and when, and announce the recording if your co-parent regularly calls from a stricter state.

Not legal advice. This page summarizes Arkansas law for general information and is not a substitute for advice from a licensed Arkansas attorney. Recording and evidence rules change and courts decide admissibility case by case. Verify against the official statute (Ark. Code Ann. § 5-60-120) and consult an attorney about your situation. See the full call recording laws by state guide for how Arkansas compares to neighboring states.