Will A.I. Court Filings Be Regulated?
The United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit has proposed a rule to address the growing number of court filings with incorrect or so called ‘hallucinated case citations’ created by artificial intelligence (AI) during document production. If implemented, it promises to make the use of AI tools in the legal profession more restricted.
Proposed on September 18, 2026, the rule would require any court document drafted with the use of AI tools to include a certification that a human reviewed the work to confirm it contains no references to misquoted or nonexistent cases in its legal analysis.
The Tenth Circuit, which handles appeals from Colorado, New Mexico, Kansas, Oklahoma, Wyoming, and Utah, chose to take action after a pair of AI-related filing issues earlier this year resulted in a fine for an attorney and a warning issued to a pro se party. The court says final 2027 rules will be posted by December 1, 2026, with the changes scheduled to take effect January 1, 2027. The rule puts the onus on the person submitting a court document, whether fully or partially created with AI, to independently verify the existence of all cited authorities and the accuracy of any quotes and references.
As written, the procedural rule would apply to anyone who files a document with the Tenth Circuit, including pro se applicants. In addition to existing punishments for transgressors, such as monetary sanctions, administrative discipline, and dismissal, the proposed rule would authorize the court to deem the affected issue waived or strike a noncompliant submission.
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