The Fifth Circuit — which covers federal courts in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas — would be the first federal appeals court to adopt an AI rule, if implemented.
The proposed rule, floated last year, would require lawyers to certify that no generative AI program was used to draft the document, or if an AI program was used, that all text, including citations, “has been reviewed for accuracy and approved by a human.”
The proposal was open to comments through Jan. 4, and on Tuesday released the legal community's reactions that span from one end of the spectrum to another, with some saying it will stifle the benefits of generative AI, and others saying it should simply stomp out the use of AI in court documents.
The rule has garnered mixed reactions, with some lawyers saying the change isn't necessary, and others saying it doesn't go far enough.
The Fifth Circuit's proposed rule change comes as the legal world continues to grapple with the use of AI tools.
The US District Court for the Eastern District of Texas has already adopted a rule requiring lawyers to verify materials created by AI. And a representative for the US Court of Appeals Ninth Circuit — the largest federal appeals court in the country which covers the nation’s major tech hubs — confirmed earlier this month that the court was creating a panel to study the issue.
The Southern District of New York in June sanctioned two personal injury attorneys for submitting a brief written by artificial intelligence that cited nonexistent case law.