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- Drug and Alcohol
Court approved hair, nail, blood drug and alcohol testing - Maternity and Paternity
Ministry of Justice approved legal DNA testing - Wider Relationships
Understanding second and third degree familial connections - Immigration
Home Office approved testing for visas and passports - Expert Services
Court standard expert witness reporting - International DNA Collection
Home Office approved DNA collection from overseas
Why Delayed Evidence Is Slowing Down Justice for Families
Despite ongoing reforms, the latest Ministry of Justice figures show that care proceedings in England and Wales still take an average of 41.2 weeks—far above the 26-week statutory target introduced in the Children and Families Act 2014. In April–June 2024, only 32% of cases were resolved within the target timeframe, highlighting a justice system that is still struggling to deliver timely outcomes for vulnerable children.
At AttoLife, we believe that access to fast, court-ready testing can be part of the solution. From drug and alcohol analysis to legal DNA testing for custody cases, scientific evidence can shorten case durations and reduce the number of children caught in legal limbo.
The Evidence Bottleneck
Time is a critical factor in care proceedings. Delays caused by incomplete or unclear evidence can stretch case durations by months. Local Authorities, solicitors and judges often wait for toxicology results, confirmation of abstinence, or kinship verification before making decisions that determine where a child lives.
This is where forensic evidence becomes critical:
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Hair strand testing offers a 3–6 month retrospective view on drug or alcohol use, ideal for assessing patterns of consumption over time.
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PEth testing provides high-specificity confirmation of alcohol consumption over the past 3–4 weeks. It has a low false-positive rate, addressing concerns often searched online like "false positive PEth test."
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Nail testing, now accepted in many courts, can detect cocaine in fingernails and other substances up to 6 months after use—essential when hair is unavailable.
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SCRAM alcohol monitoring offer 24/7 real-time sweat analysis. Despite popular queries like "how to drink with a SCRAM bracelet," the truth is: you can't trick a SCRAM bracelet. Any alcohol consumed is detected, and tampering is logged.
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DNA testing for family law clarifies parentage and kinship questions. From verifying the identity of a biological father to confirming grandparent relationships, these tests are vital when determining custody or viable permanence care solutions. Court-ordered DNA tests must be accurate, fast, and compliant with chain-of-custody standards.
When this evidence is delivered before key hearings, particularly the Issues Resolution Hearing (IRH), it can prevent unnecessary delays, avoid final hearings, and move children toward permanency.
Public Law Outline: Progress, but Gaps Remain
In 2023, Sir Andrew McFarlane relaunched the Public Law Outline (PLO) in an effort to reduce delays. The initiative aimed to streamline court processes and promote earlier resolution—especially at the IRH stage.
Yet in July 2024, Sir Andrew acknowledged that only a small percentage of cases are actually resolved at IRH, often due to poor time allocation and missing information. He noted that judges sometimes have four or five IRHs in a day, making thorough case preparation impossible.
AttoLife’s role here is simple but powerful:
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Provide legally defensible, fast-turnaround reports
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Ensure testing fits PLO timelines
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Clarify grey areas (e.g. whether exposure was passive or direct, or if a relative is biologically eligible to care for a child)
Better evidence early on means fewer drawn-out disputes.
The Rise of DoL Orders: A Symptom of Delay
Another urgent trend is the increase in Deprivation of Liberty (DoL) orders. In the first half of 2024, there were 590 DoL applications, more than five times the number of secure accommodation requests. This surge is largely due to a lack of placements in Secure Children’s Homes (SCHs), but it also reflects the consequences of delay: when decisions are postponed, risk escalates.
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DoL orders were intended as a last resort, yet courts are now using them regularly, often placing children in unregulated settings.
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Half of children under DoL orders remain there for over a year, according to Nuffield Family Justice Observatory.
Many of these cases could have been resolved sooner if robust evidence—on parental capacity, abstinence, or relative viability—had been available earlier or correctly applied.
Children Deserve Faster Answers
The Family Justice Board has set 2025 targets:
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No open public law case should take longer than 100 weeks
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Care and supervision cases should average 32 weeks
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81% of new cases should be completed in under 26 weeks
We won’t get there through procedural reform alone. We also need data that drives decisions.
AttoLife is committed to supporting:
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Local authorities seeking early clarification
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Legal teams preparing for PLO including IRHs and final hearings
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Families navigating sensitive but urgent questions of kinship and capacity
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Expert Witness Court attendance when required
Our testing services—covering hair drug tests, hair alcohol tests, nails, blood (PEth), SCRAM, and court-approved legal DNA tests—are built for the pressures of family court. Fast. Defensible. Child-focused.
Conclusion: Reducing the Time Children Spend in Limbo
Children caught in care proceedings live with uncertainty every day that passes without resolution. That’s why AttoLife believes our role isn’t just scientific—it’s safeguarding.
Whether it's ruling out passive exposure to drugs, validating abstinence to alcohol, or confirming familial ties through legal DNA testing in the UK, our goal is to help the system move faster, with confidence. Because no child should wait for months when the truth could take just days to uncover.