Tracking Federal Judge Orders On Artificial Intelligence
For additional information on how state courts, bar organizations and other legal groups are handling generative AI guidance and restrictions, check out this tracker from Practical Guidance.
With the rise of generative artificial intelligence and more attorneys using the technology for brief writing and research, several federal judges have issued orders requiring lawyers to certify the use and accuracy of AI in their briefs.
A few months after generative AI became public, the shortcomings of using the technology for brief writing was dramatically illustrated by a case in New York where two personal injury attorneys were sanctioned in June for submitting an AI-generated with fake case citations. The incident was a catalyst for several judges to issue orders on AI.
Here Law360 Pulse created a tracker to follow all the orders that federal judges have issued on the use of AI in their courts.
| Court | Judge | Order date | Order link | Relevant excerpt | Law360 coverage |
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Graphics by Ben Jay
NEWS & ANALYSIS
By Sarah Martinson
Litigators are being mindful of their ethical obligations when using artificial intelligence tools by double-checking AI outputs in light of a smattering of standing orders that judges have issued on the topic.
By Sarah Martinson
Almost a year after issuing a standing order on generative artificial intelligence, Illinois Magistrate Judge Gabriel A. Fuentes has pulled back that order, finding it no longer necessary and slightly burdensome, the judge recently said at a panel during the American Bar Association's annual meeting in Chicago.
By Ryan Boysen
Attorneys in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of North Carolina will now have a tougher time experimenting with generative artificial intelligence, after the court's judges issued a standing order requiring lawyers to file a certification alongside every brief stating that AI was not used to help prepare the brief.
By Sarah Martinson
Several law scholars who spoke with Law360 Pulse agree with the Fifth Circuit's recent decision not to adopt a proposed rule on the use of artificial intelligence in court filings and hope the decision will influence other courts to take a similar approach.
By Sarah Martinson
The Fifth Circuit has decided this week not to adopt a proposed rule requiring attorneys to verify that documents were not written using generative artificial intelligence, or if they were, that they were checked for accuracy by humans.
By Lynn LaRowe
Texas lawyers should not only be on guard when using artificial intelligence in their own legal work but careful about checking their opponents filings for "hallucinations and bias," a federal judge and a law professor warned during a virtual panel discussion on Wednesday.
By Sarah Martinson
Several federal judges have issued standing orders blocking or putting guidelines on the use of artificial intelligence over accuracy issues with the technology, but a few legal scholars have raised concerns that the orders might discourage attorneys and self-represented litigants from using AI.
By Cara Bayles & Steven Trader
Though his standing order on lawyers writing briefs using artificial intelligence — one of the first in the country to address the technology — is fairly broad, Judge Michael Baylson of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania says he's "not banning AI."
By Steven Lerner
Legal practitioners must still follow key ethical obligations as generative technology is used in litigation and blunders related to ChatGPT capture headlines, a panel of judges said Wednesday at the ALM Legalweek Conference.
By Lauren Berg
The Fifth Circuit's proposed rule change requiring that attorneys verify documents were not written using generative artificial intelligence and, if they were, that they were reviewed for accuracy by humans has garnered mixed reactions, with some lawyers saying the change isn't necessary, and others saying it doesn't go far enough.
By Danielle Ferguson
The Eastern District of Michigan published a proposed rule Friday that would require lawyers to disclose any time they use AI to help them with written filings and verify its citations are real, after lawyers across the country have been caught passing off faulty AI work as their own.
By Madison Arnold
Attorneys before the Fifth Circuit may soon have to inform the federal appeals court that their documents were not written using generative artificial intelligence programs and, if they were, that they were reviewed by humans for accuracy.
By Sarah Martinson
Generative artificial intelligence is no fad, so attorneys need to familiarize themselves with the technology, but they also need to be careful with how they use it, a trio of judges said Friday at the American Bar Association Business Law Section's fall meeting.
By Sarah Martinson
Generative artificial intelligence that can produce texts, images and audio is going to pose many challenges for courts, so they need to pay attention to the development of this technology and not ignore it, according to court experts.
By Sarah Martinson
A Montana federal judge has issued an order prohibiting an out-of-state attorney from using artificial intelligence drafting tools like ChatGPT to help with brief writing, making it the latest court order on the use of AI in preparing court filings.
By Sarah Martinson
A Pennsylvania federal judge has joined at least two other U.S. judges in requiring attorneys to disclose when they use artificial intelligence to prepare court filings, in response to news reports about briefs being filed with fake case citations.
By Sarah Martinson
Another U.S. judge has issued an order requiring attorneys to disclose the use of generative artificial intelligence tools in their brief writing, citing concerns about not being able to protect confidential or business proprietary information entered into these tools.
By Jack Karp
A Texas federal judge is being reasonable in requiring attorneys appearing before him to certify that they did not use generative artificial intelligence to write their briefs, or that they checked those filings if they did, judges and experts told Law360 Pulse on Wednesday.