This one slipped through with almost no coverage, but it matters if your case ever involves an expert, and a lot of contested children’s cases do. From 20 July 2026, a change to the Family Procedure Rules tightens up who is allowed to give expert evidence about your family.
What changed
The Family Procedure (Amendment) Rules 2026 added a new rule (25.5A) which means that, in many children’s proceedings, expert evidence now generally has to come from a regulated expert: someone who is a member of a recognised professional body and subject to its standards and complaints process. The rules also draw a clearer line between a “regulated expert” and a “technical expert”, so the court knows what it is getting.
There are some exceptions, and it does not apply to cases already issued before the change came in.
Why it was needed
For years there was a real problem in the family courts: people presenting themselves as “psychologists” or assessment experts without being registered with, or accountable to, any recognised professional body. The title “psychologist” is not, on its own, legally protected in the way “clinical psychologist” is. In some cases that led to assessments of dubious quality carrying real weight in life-changing decisions about children, with no proper route to challenge the person behind them.
Requiring a regulated expert is a straightforward safeguard: if someone is going to assess you, your ex or your child, they should be qualified, accountable and open to challenge.
What it means for you
If an expert (often a psychologist doing a risk or parenting assessment) is proposed or appointed in your case:
- You can ask what they are regulated by. A regulated expert will be registered with a recognised body, for example the HCPC for practitioner psychologists. It is a fair and normal question, not a hostile one.
- If something feels off about an assessor’s credentials, raise it, calmly, through your solicitor or with the court. This rule exists precisely so that concern can be taken seriously.
- Do not let it become a tactic. The point is quality and accountability, not a way to knock out an assessment you simply do not like. Engage properly with any assessment; a regulated expert who sees a reasonable, child-focused dad is no threat to you.
Source
The change was made by the Family Procedure (Amendment) Rules 2026, in force 20 July 2026, adding rule 25.5A on regulated experts. See the Family Procedure Rules on GOV.UK.
Information, not legal advice. The rules have exceptions and do not apply to every case. Check the official source or take advice on your own situation.