New Mexico’s Supreme Court has imposed a $5,000 fine against attorney Stephen Aarons for filing an appeal brief in a murder case that contained false information generated by artificial intelligence. According to a court filing released on Wednesday, the brief included testimony attributed to witnesses who did not exist, as well as fabricated statements regarding the shooter’s clothing and physical description.
Aarons acknowledged during an August hearing that he used ChatGPT to generate portions of his submission, believing the tool would produce a reliable summary of the trial proceedings. The court found him in contempt for failing to adequately verify the factual accuracy and legal citations included in the AI-generated document. Justice C. Shannon Bacon expressed concern during the hearing about Aarons’ apparent lack of awareness regarding well-documented risks associated with AI language models, noting that such problems receive widespread media coverage.
The case reflects a broader pattern of legal professionals encountering difficulties with artificial intelligence tools in their practice. Courts have increasingly discovered instances where AI systems have generated fabricated legal citations and false quotations in briefs submitted by attorneys. In separate incidents, judges have sanctioned law firms for submitting briefs containing numerous false and misleading legal references produced by AI systems. Lawyers working on cases involving prominent figures have similarly faced penalties for including AI-generated misquotes and citations.
In a statement to news outlets, Aarons characterized his use of the technology as an unintentional error and expressed remorse for the submission. He indicated hopes that a disciplinary board would consider the circumstances when determining appropriate consequences for his actions.
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