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New York Post
2 days ago
- Business
- New York Post
UK judge warns of risk to justice after lawyers cited fake AI-generated cases in court
Lawyers have cited fake cases generated by artificial intelligence in court proceedings in England, a judge has said, warning that attorneys could be prosecuted if they don't check the accuracy of their research. High Court justice Victoria Sharp said the misuse of AI has 'serious implications for the administration of justice and public confidence in the justice system.' In the latest example of how judicial systems around the world are grappling with how to handle the increasing presence of artificial intelligence in court, Sharp and fellow judge Jeremy Johnson chastised lawyers in two recent cases in a ruling on Friday. Advertisement 3 Lawyers have cited fake cases generated by artificial intelligence in court proceedings in England, a judge has said. AP They were asked to rule after lower court judges raised concerns about 'suspected use by lawyers of generative artificial intelligence tools to produce written legal arguments or witness statements which are not then checked,' leading to false information being put before the court. In a ruling written by Sharp, the judges said that in a 90 million pound ($120 million) lawsuit over an alleged breach of a financing agreement involving the Qatar National Bank, a lawyer cited 18 cases that did not exist. Advertisement The client in the case, Hamad Al-Haroun, apologized for unintentionally misleading the court with false information produced by publicly available AI tools, and said he was responsible, rather than his solicitor, Abid Hussain. But Sharp said it was 'extraordinary that the lawyer was relying on the client for the accuracy of their legal research, rather than the other way around.' 3 High Court justice Victoria Sharp said the misuse of AI has 'serious implications for the administration of justice and public confidence in the justice system.' InfiniteFlow – In the other incident, a lawyer cited five fake cases in a tenant's housing claim against the London Borough of Haringey. Barrister Sarah Forey denied using AI, but Sharp said she had 'not provided to the court a coherent explanation for what happened.' Advertisement The judges referred the lawyers in both cases to their professional regulators, but did not take more serious action. Sharp said providing false material as if it were genuine could be considered contempt of court or, in the 'most egregious cases,' perverting the course of justice, which carries a maximum sentence of life in prison. 3 The judge also warned that attorneys could be prosecuted if they don't check the accuracy of their research. Song_about_summer – She said in the judgment that AI is a 'powerful technology' and a 'useful tool' for the law. Advertisement 'Artificial intelligence is a tool that carries with it risks as well as opportunities,' the judge said. 'Its use must take place therefore with an appropriate degree of oversight, and within a regulatory framework that ensures compliance with well-established professional and ethical standards if public confidence in the administration of justice is to be maintained.'
Boston Globe
27-03-2025
- Business
- Boston Globe
‘It's not realistic': New England food banks struggle to keep up with demand after federal government cuts $1 billion in funding
Related : Advertisement The uncertainty comes at a time of increasing food insecurity in New England, with many hunger relief organizations struggling to meet soaring demand. In Massachusetts, about Vince Hall, the chief government relations officer at Feeding America, said USDA officials told the organization that $500 million provided last year to support The Emergency Food Assistance Program was terminated. That's in addition to the About $3.3 million worth of food provided through the emergency food program scheduled to be delivered to Massachusetts food banks was canceled, the Greater Boston Food Bank told the Globe Thursday. Nearly $2.3 million worth, or about 105,000 cases, was slated for the Greater Boston Food Bank, the region's largest hunger-relief organization. Democratic Whip Katherine Clark condemned the cuts in a statement Thursday. 'Amid skyrocketing grocery prices, Republicans just stole more than $3 million in emergency food assistance from families across the Commonwealth — including 90,000 cartons of eggs. Nationally, they've robbed hungry families of more than $500 million in groceries," she said. Heather Paquette, the president of Good Shepherd Food Bank in Maine, said the organization was notified earlier this month that it would be losing out on $1.2 million in funding it expected to get over the next three years to help it purchase food from local farmers. Fifty percent of emergency food assistance deliveries the charity was scheduled to receive in the next several months have also been canceled, Paquette said. Advertisement 'We are already really running to meet the increasing need in the state of Maine with the stable sources of funding that we have been able to depend on for decades,' she said. 'An adjustment of that sort to the [food] we're moving through the state of Maine has significant negative impact on our ability to do our work.' Though some charities are hoping to recoup costs via private donors or state funding, the unexpected changes are likely to cause shortages in distribution, especially in the next few months. 'Because this is so sudden, we were really not planning for this, so we have to accommodate in the short term,' said Elsy Cipriani, executive director of the New Hampshire Food Bank. The organization learned two weeks ago that the close to $1 million it was set to receive over the next three years through the emergency food assistance program was canceled and is trying to minimize the impact of the cut on partner agencies. 'But again, maybe we have to make some internal adjustments in terms of the number of staff members that are working in that program,' Cipriani said, referring to the Jason Jakubowski, the president and CEO of Connecticut Foodshare, said a delivery of 34 trucks was canceled and cost the organization about $1.75 million to replace, he said. Connecticut Foodshare also learned that it would lose $1 million in funds from the LFPA earlier this month. Advertisement 'This has been a real gut punch for a number of different constituencies over the last couple of weeks. We're nervous, and so are our local pantries,' he said. Andrew Schiff, the CEO of Rhode Island Community Food Bank, said the organization ordered 24 truckloads of food with the money provided to the state through the increased TEFAP funding. As of Thursday, they had received 10 truckloads. Fourteen truckloads, amounting to about 500,000 pounds of food, are in limbo.c 'Now, at least the stories we're hearing, we're expecting it to be canceled,' Schiff said. Without federal assistance, food banks are unlikely to be able to keep up their current scale of operations. 'It's unrealistic to think that there is a way that we'll be able to accomplish the goals that every food bank in the nation has without the ability to rely on USDA funding,' Paquette said. The Good Shepherd Food Bank serves about Jakubowski said the $2.75 million that was cut from Connecticut Foodshare would amount to close to five and a half million meals. The organization is hoping the state government will help it recover some of the cost, but Jakubowski is worried the recent cuts are just the 'tip of the iceberg.' 'My biggest fear is that we're entering an era in which more people are hungry, but we have less food to provide them,' he said. 'That's the nightmare scenario for us and for our local pantries.' Advertisement Paquette said that for Good Shepherd, the 50 percent reduction in funding is 'unrealistic' to recover. 'We will do everything we can to close that gap,' said. 'But it's not realistic. We could have used an additional 10 percent versus the reduction of 50 percent, given the increased need we have in our state.' Emily Spatz can be reached at
