header-logo header-logo

10 October 2025
Issue: 8134 / Categories: Legal News , Criminal , Artificial intelligence , Human rights , Technology
printer mail-detail

NLJ this week: AI, liberty & the digital cage

231937
Government plans for offender ‘restriction zones’ risk creating ‘digital cages’ that blur punishment with surveillance, warns Henrietta Ronson, partner at Corker Binning, in this week's issue of NLJ

The proposed scheme, part of a £700m expansion in GPS and AI monitoring, would confine released offenders to fixed areas—potentially breaching rights to liberty, privacy and livelihood under the ECHR.

Ronson argues the measures are incompatible with existing case law and plagued by the UK’s history of failed tagging systems. With AI risk-assessment algorithms already criticised as biased, she cautions against letting machines replace judicial discretion.

Drawing parallels with failed US exclusion laws, Ronson says such zones would breed inequality and resentment without reducing crime. Justice, she writes, ‘requires empathy and context—not predictive policing and perpetual monitoring’

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Shakespeare Martineau—Marie Bourke

Shakespeare Martineau—Marie Bourke

Shakespeare Martineau strengthens Sheffield regulatory practice with new hires

Sackers—Louise McRae & Annabella Hwang

Sackers—Louise McRae & Annabella Hwang

Sackers recruits new associates

McHale & Co—Shaun Little & Patrick Byrne

McHale & Co—Shaun Little & Patrick Byrne

Firm bolsters senior team with head of corporate and head of employment

NEWS
A wide-ranging Civil Way column highlights developments from insolvency procedure to employment law, but one case stands out for its lessons on bankruptcy, family homes and digital communications
A sprawling Intellectual Property Office battle between House of Fraser and Frasers Property has delivered a masterclass in modern trade mark law
Courts in England and Wales and Singapore are increasingly confronting complex disputes over international child relocation as families become more globally mobile
The government’s long-awaited family law reform consultation could mark a turning point for domestic abuse victims navigating financial remedy proceedings, but significant challenges remain
A new commercial court pilot giving the public access to documents used in hearings, including expert reports, is raising difficult questions about transparency and privacy
back-to-top-scroll