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24 April 2026
Issue: 8158 / Categories: Legal News , Technology , Family , Disclosure , Privacy
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NLJ this week: Brain data could rewrite family justice

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Emerging technologies may soon transform how courts determine truth in deeply personal disputes. In this week's NLJ, Madhavi Kabra of 1 Hare Court and Harry Lambert of Outer Temple Chambers explore how neurotechnology could reshape family law

Wearables may replace ‘he says, she says’ disputes with objective neural data on stress, memory and recognition. From custody battles to hidden assets, courts could access ‘time-stamped’ physiological evidence.

Yet risks loom: privacy breaches, admissibility hurdles and reliance on expert interpretation. Judges may face a ‘battle of the experts’.

The promise is clarity; the danger is ‘state-sanctioned mental intrusion’ into intimate human experience.

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Haynes Boone—Louise Woods

Haynes Boone—Louise Woods

Haynes Boone expands global capabilities with addition of Louise Woods as chair of international disputes

DWF—John Gilfedder

DWF—John Gilfedder

DWF strengthens Global Risks practice with strategic hire of aviation partner in London

Shakespeare Martineau—10 newly qualified solicitors

Shakespeare Martineau—10 newly qualified solicitors

Shakespeare Martineau appoints newly qualified solicitors

NEWS
A divorced woman has secured funding to participate in her former husband’s inquest after the Legal Aid Agency reconsidered repeated refusals
MPs cannot simply resign their Commons seats. Instead, they take a nominal Crown office, usually the Chiltern Hundreds or Manor of Northstead, which disqualifies them from sitting
The Thirlwall Inquiry has exposed a ‘complete failure’ to protect babies at the Countess of Chester Hospital, but its recommendations must now be put into practice
When does a solicitor’s retainer become a contentious business agreement? The Court of Appeal’s decision in Broadfield Law UK LLP v Barnes shows that listing hourly rates alone will not do, leaving firms and clients uncertain about their rights over bills
Developers in areas with poorly performing councils can apply directly to the Planning Inspectorate for permission under section 62A of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990
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