Latest news with #RichardBednar
Indian Express
12 hours ago
- Politics
- Indian Express
US lawyer sanctioned after court discovers false citations filed using ChatGPT
A lawyer from the US state of Utah has been sanctioned by the court of appeals after he was discovered to have used ChatGPT for a filing, which contained a nonexistent court case. The brief, which has landed the lawyer in a controversy, was written by a law clerk at the firm and it wasn't reviewed before filing in Utah's court of appeals. The Utah court of appeals, in its decision earlier this week, had decided to impose sanctions on Richard Bednar, the attorney who was accused of filing a brief in the court which contained false citations which were created using ChatGPT. The court documents reviewed by ABC4 showed Bednar and Douglas Durbano, another Utah-based attorney who was serving as the counsel for the petitioner, filed a 'timely petition for interlocutory appeal.' But upon going through the brief which was written by a clerk of the law firm, the respondents counsel found several incorrect references and false citations that did not even exist. According to court documents, the respondent's counsel wrote 'It appears that at least some portions of the Petition may be AI-generated, including citations and even quotations to at least one case that does not appear to exist in any legal database and could only be found in ChatGPT and references to cases that are wholly unrelated to the referenced subject matter,' The Guardian reported. The ABC4, citing Utah court of appeals, stated that Bednar acknowledged the errors which were present in the briefing filed by the law clerk on behalf of the law firm, and apologized. The court found Bednar guilty of 'submitting a petition that contained fake precedent generated by ChatGPT.' The court then ordered Bednar to pay the respondent's attorney and hearing fees, refund the legal fees to their client and donate $1,000 to 'And Justice For All', a Utah-based non-profit legal organization within 14 days.
The Guardian
16 hours ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
US lawyer sanctioned after caught using ChatGPT for court brief
The Utah court of appeals has sanctioned a lawyer after he was discovered to have used ChatGPT for a filing he made in which he referenced a nonexistent court case. Earlier this week, the Utah court of appeals made the decision to sanction Richard Bednar over claims that he filed a brief which included false citations. According to court documents reviewed by ABC4, Bednar and Douglas Durbano, another Utah-based lawyer who was serving as the petitioner's counsel, filed a 'timely petition for interlocutory appeal'. Upon reviewing the brief which was written by a law clerk, the respondent's counsel found several false citations of cases. 'It appears that at least some portions of the Petition may be AI-generated, including citations and even quotations to at least one case that does not appear to exist in any legal database (and could only be found in ChatGPT and references to cases that are wholly unrelated to the referenced subject matter,' the respondent's counsel said in documents reviewed by ABC4. The outlet reports that the brief referenced a case titled 'Royer v Nelson', which did not exist in any legal database. Following the discovery of the false citations, Bednar 'acknowledged 'the errors contained in the petition' and apologized', according to a document from the Utah court of appeals, ABC4 reports. It went on to add that during a hearing in April, Bednar and his attorney 'acknowledged that the petition contained fabricated legal authority, which was obtained from ChatGPT, and they accepted responsibility for the contents of the petition'. According to Bednar and his attorney, an 'unlicensed law clerk' wrote up the brief and Bednar did not 'independently check the accuracy' before he made the filing. ABC4 further reports that Durbano was not involved in the creation of the petition and the law clerk responsible for the filing was a law school graduate who was terminated from the law firm. The outlet added that Bednar offered to pay any related attorney fees to 'make amends'. In a statement reported by ABC4, the Utah court of appeals said: 'We agree that the use of AI in the preparation of pleadings is a legal research tool that will continue to evolve with advances in technology. However, we emphasize that every attorney has an ongoing duty to review and ensure the accuracy of their court filings. In the present case, petitioner's counsel fell short of their gatekeeping responsibilities as members of the Utah State Bar when they submitted a petition that contained fake precedent generated by ChatGPT.' As a result of the false citations, ABC4 reports that Bednar was ordered to pay the respondent's attorney fees for the petition and hearing, refund fees to their client for the time used to prepare the filing and attend the feeling, as well as donate $1,000 to the Utah-based legal non-profit And Justice for All.
Daily Mail
21 hours ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Utah lawyer in deep water after using AI to prepare brief citing case that doesn't exist
A Utah lawyer has been sanctioned by the state court of appeals after a filing he used was found to have used ChatGPT and contained a reference to a fake court case. Richard Bednar, an attorney at Durbano Law, was reprimanded by officials after filing a 'timely petition for interlocutory appeal', that referenced the bogus case. The case referenced, according to documents, was 'Royer v. Nelson' which did not exist in any legal database and was found to be made up by ChatGPT. Opposing counsel said that the only way they would find any mention of the case was by using the AI. They even went as far as to ask the AI if the case was real, noting in a filing that it then apologized and said it was a mistake. Bednar's attorney, Matthew Barneck, said that the research was done by a clerk and Bednar took all responsibility for failing to review the cases. He told The Salt Lake Tribune: 'That was his mistake. He owned up to it and authorized me to say that and fell on the sword.' According to documents, the respondent's counsel said: 'It appears that at least some portions of the Petition may be AI-generated, including citations and even quotations to at least one case that does not appear to exist in any legal database (and could only be found in ChatGPT and references to cases that are wholly unrelated to the referenced subject matter.' The court said in their opinion: 'We agree that the use of AI in the preparation of pleadings is a research tool that will continue to evolve with advances in technology. 'However, we emphasize that every attorney has an ongoing duty to review and ensure the accuracy of their court filings.' As a result, he has been ordered to pay the attorney fees of the opposing party in the case. He was also ordered to refund any fees that he had charges to clients to file the AI-generated motion. Despite the sanctions, the court did ultimately rule that Bednar did not intend to deceive the court. They did say that the Bar's Office of Professional Conduct would take the matter 'seriously'. According to the court, the state bar is 'actively engaging with practitioners and ethics experts to provide guidance and continuing legal education on the ethical use of AI in law practice'. has approached Bednar for comment. It's not the first time a lawyer has been sanctioned for using AI in their legal briefs, after an incredibly similar situation in 2023 in New York. Lawyers Steven Schwartz, Peter LoDuca and their firm Levidow, Levidow & Oberman were ordered to pay a $5,000 fine for submitting a brief containing fictitious case citations. The judge found the lawyers acted in bad faith and made 'acts of conscious avoidance and false and misleading statements to the court'. Prior to the fine Schwartz admitted that he had used ChatGPT to help research the brief in the case.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Utah lawyer sanctioned for court filing that used ChatGPT and referenced nonexistent court case
SALT LAKE CITY () — A Utah lawyer has been sanctioned by the Utah Court of Appeals after a filing he made was found to use ChatGPT and contain a reference to a nonexistent court case. The brief was written by a law clerk at the firm, and the false citations were not reviewed before filing. The Utah Court of Appeals has decided to impose sanctions on Richard Bednar, an attorney who they claim filed a brief that used false citations created by ChatGPT. The Supreme Court reinstates federal approval in Uinta Basin Railway project According to documents, Bednar and Douglas Durbano, as the petitioner's counsel, filed a 'timely petition for interlocutory appeal.' When the respondent's counsel reviewed this brief, they found it to reference cases that were incorrect or did not exist. 'It appears that at least some portions of the Petition may be AI-generated, including citations and even quotations to at least one case that does not appear to exist in any legal database (and could only be found in ChatGPT and references to cases that are wholly unrelated to the referenced subject matter,' the respondent's counsel wrote, according to documents. The referenced case was 'Royer v. Nelson,' a case that did not exist in any legal database and was found to be an 'AI 'hallucinated' case that does not exist anywhere other than on ChatGPT.' In a phone call with Matthew C. Barneck, the attorney who represented Bednar at the OPC hearing, he shared that Bednar was not aware that ChatGPT was used until the citations were called into question. At that point, Bednar owned up to what happened. Following this response, Bednar 'acknowledged 'the errors contained in the petition' and apologized,' according to the document from the Utah Court of Appeals. He also offered to pay attorney fees incurred by the response to 'make amends.' President Trump pardons rapper NBA YoungBoy At an Office of Professional Conduct (OPC) hearing on April 22, 2025, documents say that Bednar and his attorney for the hearing 'acknowledged that the Petition contained fabricated legal authority, which was obtained from ChatGPT, and they accepted responsibility for the contents of the Petition.' They told the court that an 'unlicensed law clerk' had prepared the brief, and Bednar did not 'independently check the accuracy' before he signed it and filed it with the court. Durbano was reportedly uninvolved in the creation and filing of the petition. The law firm did not have an AI policy in place at the time, but they told the court on April 22 that they had since initiated one. Barneck clarified that most law clerks are not licensed, and the law clerk in question had previously been licensed and was a law school graduate. Why are police asking for help with finding a woman who vanished nearly 50 years ago? According to the analysis by the Utah Court of Appeals, this is the first time a court filing has been created with AI, and it has not been previously addressed by the Utah State Courts. They turned to other cases to make their decision on the sanctions. 'We agree that the use of AI in the preparation of pleadings is a legal research tool that will continue to evolve with advances in technology. However, we emphasize that every attorney has an ongoing duty to review and ensure the accuracy of their court filings. In the present case, Petitioner's counsel fell short of their gatekeeping responsibilities as members of the Utah State Bar when they submitted a petition that contained fake precedent generated by ChatGPT,' the Utah Court of Appeals said in the document. The Utah Court of Appeals further stated that, while they appreciated Bednar's acknowledgment of his wrongdoing, they still needed to place sanctions due to the mishandling of the filing and not thoroughly reviewing the document before he signed it. Bednar was ordered to pay the respondent's attorney fees for the petition and hearing, refund fees to their client for the time used to prepare the AI filing and attend the hearing, and donate $1,000 to '' — a Utah legal nonprofit — within 14 days. Utah family prepares to bury WWII pilot who was MIA for 80 years 'Although the Office of Professional Conduct (OPC) is bound by strict confidentiality rules and cannot comment on pending or nonpublic matters, the OPC takes seriously any conduct that may compromise the integrity of the judiciary and the legal profession. Additionally, the Utah State Bar is actively engaging with practitioners and ethics experts to provide guidance and continuing legal education on the ethical use of AI in law practice,' the said in a statement to ABC4. On the ethics section of their site, the Utah State Bar on the use of AI. They offer the following advice to lawyers who are considering the use of ChatGPT: 'Treat AI-generated results like a draft from a law clerk. Check any propositions or citations that you're not 100% sure about.' Barneck told ABC4 that what happened was an oversight, and the court's opinion indicates that they believe it was done negligently and not recklessly. He shared that he was glad that Bednar owned up to what happened instead of trying to sweep it under the rug like lawyers in a similar position have. Meet the new faces at Utah's Hogle Zoo! Disneyland's 70th Anniversary food drop is amazing! Drywall damage? All Four Walls is there to help make it disappear UCAIR is giving out free gas cans in Davis County: Here's why it matters A 5k to benefit the non-profit Hope After Polygamy Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
