Australian lawyer penalised for using AI to generate false legal citations

A Victorian lawyer has become the first in Australia to face professional sanctions for using artificial intelligence (AI) to generate false legal citations for a court case.

Initially the lawyer submitted the documents to the court and the judge and their staff were unable to find the cited cases.

Upon further investigation, the lawyer admitted that he has prepared a list by using software that employs artificial intelligence (AI).

The lawyer has admitted to the court that he did not verify the accuracy of the information provided by the AI tool before making the final submission.

Concerning the situation, the lawyer offered an unconditional apology to the court and said that he would “take the lesson learned to heart” and asked not to proceed with more investigation.

He said that he did not recognize the importance of fact-checking any information generated by such tools.

In order to compensate for the court time wasted, he made a payment to the solicitors.

The investigations by the Victorian Legal Services Board further suggests that the lawyer was no longer entitled to practice as a principal lawyer, cannot operate his own law practice, professionally penalized for using AI to generate false legal citations, and would only practice as an employee solicitor.

A spokesperson said, “The board’s regulatory action in this matter demonstrates our commitment to ensuring legal practitioners who choose to use AI in their legal practice to do so in a responsible way that is consistent with their obligations.”

Courts and law groups acknowledge that AI has a significant role in increasing efficiency in legal processes but continue to warn that it does not reduce lawyers' professional judgment.

The Law Council of Australia’s president, Juliana Warner has told Guardian, “Where these tools are utilized by lawyers, this must be done with extreme care.”

“Lawyers must always keep in mind their professional and ethical obligations to the court and to their clients,” she further added.

According to Warner, this case of using AI has generated fake legal citations is a leading crucial issue.

However, they are not pushing for an absolute prohibition on the technology in legal proceedings.