The penalties are getting tougher for fake ChatGPT citations. A Colorado lawyer was suspended for a year for doing so, at least for now.

According to CBS News (Colorado lawyer suspended for using AI platform to draft legal motion, written by Ben Warwick and available here), A judge ordered Zachariah Crabill to a one year and one day suspension after Crabill allegedly “cited case law that he found through the artificial intelligence platform ChatGPT” to draft a motion in a civil case in May. The platform produced cases that were (wait for it!) incorrect and fictitious.

Crabill allegedly did not alert the court to the existence of the incorrect cases after he filed the motion. He also did not withdraw the motion.

A ruling handed down notes that when the judge asked Crabill about possible inaccuracies, Crabill attributed the mistakes to a legal intern. Six days after the hearing, he filed an affidavit explaining that he used the platform when he drafted the motion.

The presiding judge noted that Crabill violated several of the Colorado Bar Association’s Rules of Professional Conduct. However…if he successfully completes a 90-day suspension and two subsequent years of probation, the rest of the year suspension will be forgiven.

After fake case citations here and here (and even here from a pro se party), it seems courts are going to have to get tougher with penalties for lawyers who submit filings with fake ChatGPT case citations. You would think public humiliation would be enough of a deterrent – apparently not! 😮

Hat tip to Maura R. Grossman for the heads up on this story!

So, what do you think? Are you surprised that a Colorado lawyer was suspended for a year for fake ChatGPT citations? Or surprised it hasn’t happened before now? Please share any comments you might have or if you’d like to know more about a particular topic.

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