SC flags 'alarming' trend of lawyers using AI to draft petitions

Supreme Court

The Supreme Court on Tuesday underlined what it called 'alarming' trend of lawyers using artificial intelligence (AI) tools to draft petitions, cautioning that multiple filings have cited judgements and extracts that 'do not exist'.

A Bench led by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant expressed grave concern over the growing use of AI in court filings without proper authentication.

“We have been alarmingly told that some lawyers have started using AI for drafting," the CJI observed during the hearing. Highlighting an example, Justice BV Nagarathna noted, “There was a case of Mercy vs Mankind which does not exist."

Justice Nagarathna further noted that in some cases, lawyers had cited genuine Supreme Court judgments, but the quoted portions were fabricated. “Then some are citing real supreme court cases, but those quoted portions do not even exist in the judgment," she remarked.

The Chief Justice added that a similar instance had occurred in a matter before Justice Dipankar Datta. “All precedents cited never existed," he remarked.

The Court’s observations form part of broader concerns within the judiciary on how artificial intelligence was beginning to shape legal work.

Last year, the Supreme Court and other courts had come across pleadings and even orders that referred to case laws which could not be found in official records.

This resulted in courts issuing repeated reminders about the need for accuracy and proper verification.

Judges have been pointing out that while technology can be helpful for research and managing cases, the final responsibility still lies with lawyers and judges.

Courts have made it clear that every citation and legal reference must be checked against authorised sources before being placed on record.