Sharing insights with peers on new drug patch and breath testing

The Family Law Company recently hosted a talk giving updates on the latest innovation in evidence provision for certain family law cases.

Held at Oriel House in Exeter, Tech Talks by Lextox gave an overview of the new drug patch test and bespoke breath test, which provides evidence of abstinence where parents are required to make changes to their lifestyle. In such cases, it is crucial to ensure children will be safe and well if they are to live with their parent/s.

Lextox supplies drug, alcohol, abstinence and DNA testing to family law professionals, providing legally defensible analysis results and expert reports that can be used in the family court. Lextox Regional Account Manager Richard Thomas and Quality & Business Service Manager Liam Feasey, one of the experts whose knowledge is called on by TFLC in court cases, explained to delegates how the new testing works.

Drug patch testing requires the client to wear a patch for up to 10 days as a one-off exercise or for continuous use, fitting new patches as necessary, for up to three months. The patch enables Lextox to identify a variety of different drugs. The result will support those clients who are abstaining from drug use to show that they are making change. In addition, the bespoke breath test service is available as both planned and unscheduled tests where the client is notified shortly before testing to ensure veracity of results. In both cases, test reports are issued directly to the solicitor, who will also receive immediate alerts if there is a drinking episode.

As well as team members from The Family Law Company, the talk was opened up to other interested parties, with attendees from other local legal firms, the LA, Chambers, judiciary and Children’s Guardians from CAFCASS.

Galina Labworth from The Family Law Company, said: “We felt it important to include our peers in this opportunity to receive updates on drug and alcohol testing. 

“It’s a gritty subject but it is critical that we all understand it, in order to support clients as much as possible. The new patch test does simplify things for clients, and we hope it will also give them added motivation to turn their lives around.”

Lextox was founded in 2011 by industry experts to provide an industry-leading drug and alcohol testing service. The company now has a client base of over 17,000 family law professionals and local authorities across the UK.