The Volokh Conspiracy

Mostly law professors | Sometimes contrarian | Often libertarian | Always independent

Large Libel Models

Colorado Lawyer "Says ChatGPT Created Fake Cases He Cited in Court Documents"

"I felt ... my efficiency ... could be exponentially augmented to the benefit of my clients by expediting the time-intensive research portion of drafting."

|

KRDO (Quinn Ritzdorf) reports the lawyer "thought he was filing a motion with cited cases that would favor his client's argument, only to find out many of the cases were made up by Artificial Intelligence software ChatGPT." The lawyer said that "it was the first motion to set aside a summary judgment he had ever researched, drafted, and filed by himself:

"I felt my lack of experience in legal research and writing, and consequently, my efficiency in this regard could be exponentially augmented to the benefit of my clients by expediting the time-intensive research portion of drafting," Crabill said in a court document….

At first, he asked ChatGPT about existing Colorado laws. He said the responses were accurate and he trusted the technology….

"Based on the accuracy of prior validated responses, and the apparent accuracy of the case law citations, it never even dawned on me that this technology could be deceptive," Crabill [the lawyer] said in court documents.

Thanks to Jake Karr for the pointer.