All articles tagged with #ai in law
Prosecutors used ChatGPT logs and prompts as part of their case against Jonathan Rinderknecht in the Palisades wildfire arson trial, including ChatGPT-generated fire imagery and questions about blame; but jurors were unconvinced, the verdict was deadlocked 10-2 in favor of the defense, and the judge declared a hung jury resulting in a mistrial.
In a May New York appellate hearing, Justices Valerie Brathwaite Nelson and Hector LaSalle publicly rebuked attorney Michael Sanders for citing cases that appeared fictitious—likely AI-generated—and warned that misrepresenting law to a tribunal is a serious breach of professional conduct. The confrontation, captured on a courtroom livestream, underscored growing concern about AI-fabricated citations; Sanders apologized, opposing counsel pressed for due diligence, and the court ordered show cause as sanctions were considered. Landberg v. City of New York was later dismissed in light of the proceedings.
California's Senate approved SB 574 to set guardrails on AI use by lawyers and arbitrators, including confidentiality duties, nondelegable citation verification, and strict limits on AI in decision-making, sending the measure to the Assembly.
British startup Lawhive, which operates as an AI-enabled law firm handling routine consumer legal matters via a network of about 500 lawyers across three regulated firms, closed a $60 million Series B led by Mitch Rales of Danaher with GV, Balderton, TQ Ventures and Jigsaw participating. The funding will fuel U.S. expansion (now active in 35 states with offices in Austin and a new New York HQ) after revenue exceeded $35 million as the company grows quickly. Lawhive’s platform automates drafting, research, case management and client onboarding, with human lawyers reviewing work, a model the company says reduces costs and expands access to legal services, aiming to grow five- to sevenfold this year.