A Victorian lawyer has become the first in Australia to face professional sanctions for using artificial intelligence in a court case, after submitting false citations generated by software that he failed to verify.
The solicitor, who cannot be named, was representing a husband in a family law dispute when Justice Amanda Humphreys asked for a list of prior cases. In a 19 July 2024 hearing, he provided a document later revealed to contain non-existent cases.
According to The Guardian, Justice Humphreys and her associates were unable to identify the citations, and when the matter returned to court, the lawyer admitted the list had been prepared using legal software with an AI element. He conceded he had not checked the accuracy of the information before handing it to the court.
The lawyer issued an “unconditional apology” and reimbursed the opposing solicitors for the costs of the adjourned hearing.
According to the report, Justice Humphreys accepted his apology but referred him to the Victorian Legal Services Board, emphasising the public interest in examining professional conduct, given the increasing use of AI in law.
Following the investigation, the board confirmed the lawyer’s practising certificate was varied on 19 August. According to The Guardian, the lawyer has been stripped of his right to operate as a principal lawyer, barred from handling trust money, and must now work only as an employee solicitor under two years of supervised practice with quarterly reporting.
“The board’s regulatory action in this matter demonstrates our commitment to ensuring legal practitioners who choose to use AI in their legal practice do so in a responsible way that is consistent with their obligations,”
a spokesperson said.
Since the case, more than 20 similar instances have been reported in Australian courts, including matters in New South Wales and Western Australia, where lawyers or self-represented litigants submitted AI-generated documents containing fake citations.
Legal regulators and courts are now grappling with how to manage the risks and responsibilities of using AI in legal practice, with growing calls for clear national guidelines.
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