Lawyer fined $5K over AI-hallucinated witnesses in a murder case
The New Mexico Supreme Court has fined attorney Stephen Aarons $5,000 and held him in contempt for submitting an appeal brief containing AI-fabricated witnesses and false testimony. During the hearing, a justice questioned Aarons' awareness of the widespread risks associated with AI hallucinations, noting that such issues are frequently reported in the news. Aarons admitted to using ChatGPT to create a summary of the trial and expressed remorse, describing the incident as an honest mistake.
- ▪The New Mexico Supreme Court fined lawyer Stephen Aarons $5,000 for including AI-generated false testimony in a murder case appeal.
- ▪The court held Aarons in contempt for failing to verify the factual claims and legal authority in his AI-generated brief.
- ▪Justice C. Shannon Bacon criticized Aarons for not being aware of the common risks of AI hallucinations in legal filings.
- ▪Aarons admitted to using ChatGPT to generate a summary of the trial, believing it would produce a bulletproof document.
- ▪This incident follows a trend of lawyers facing penalties for submitting briefs with fabricated citations or quotes generated by AI tools.
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AICloseAIPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All AINewsCloseNewsPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All NewsPolicyClosePolicyPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All PolicyLawyer fined $5K over AI-hallucinated witnesses in a murder caseA justice asked, ‘Counsel, do you watch the news?’ when a lawyer admitted to relying on ChatGPT without understanding the risks.A justice asked, ‘Counsel, do you watch the news?’ when a lawyer admitted to relying on ChatGPT without understanding the risks.by Emma RothCloseEmma RothNews WriterPosts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your…
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