Legal Hallucination

The Pincite Belonged to Avis Rent A Car

A federal judge in Mississippi blocked a state law with an order his law clerk had drafted using AI, and an appeals court has now taken the case away.

Her Stepmother Also Knows About Hallucinations

A New Mexico defence lawyer asked ChatGPT to summarise a murder trial, then filed the summary with the state Supreme Court as his brief.

Four Hundred and Twenty-Five Crore

India’s Supreme Court set aside a customs penalty of ₹425,27,99,100 after finding that the officer who imposed it had relied on judgments that do not exist.

The Apology Required a Further Apology

The Crown Prosecution Service cited two authorities that do not exist. Its letter of apology then gave the court an incorrect account of how the error was found.

Oral Argument Lasts Thirty-Seven Seconds

A Nebraska brief carried fifty-seven defective citations out of sixty-three. The Chief Justice stopped oral argument before the attorney had finished his opening.

Their Silence, the Judge Wrote, Speaks Volumes

An Oregon federal judge imposed about $110,000 in sanctions over briefs that cited fifteen cases that do not exist. Nobody would explain who had written them.

Opposing Counsel Could Not Find Them

Two lawyers suing an airline filed a brief that cited six court decisions. The airline’s lawyers went looking for them. ChatGPT had written all six.