Skip to content

Regulation Tracker / New Zealand

Guidelines for use of generative artificial intelligence in Courts and Tribunals

Courts of New Zealand (Chief Justice)

last revised 2023-12-07last verified 2026-09-211 versioncountry page →

GuidanceIn forceVerification dutyConfidentialityPermissive

map categories:Judges' use of AIDuty to verify AI outputClient data in AI toolsSelf-represented litigantsAI-generated evidenceCourts' own AI deploymentSupervision of AI workDisclosure of AI use in filings

Three sets of guidelines issued by the Chief Justice of New Zealand on 7 December 2023 for judges, lawyers and non-lawyers using generative AI in courts and tribunals. Existing duties continue to apply, users must verify AI output and protect confidential information, and lawyers and non-lawyers need not routinely disclose chatbot use unless the court or tribunal asks.

Applies to
judges, lawyers, litigants, court-staff
Effective
07 Dec 2023
Current version
Original · 07 Dec 2023
Last verified
21 Sept 2026
Official text
www.courtsofnz.govt.nz/going-to-court/practice-directions/practice-gui…

What the document requires

  • Separate guidelines for judicial officers, lawyers and non-lawyers.
  • AI output must be checked for accuracy; fabricated citations are the user's responsibility.
  • Confidential, suppressed or private information must not be entered into public tools.
  • Lawyers and non-lawyers need not disclose chatbot use as a matter of course, but a court or tribunal may ask or require disclosure (section 5 of both guidelines).

Version history

VersionDateWhat changedSource
Originalcurrent2023-12-07First version recorded.official · archive

Related court incidents on the record

Sources

Cite this record

SafeLegalAI Legal AI Regulation Tracker, "Guidelines for use of generative artificial intelligence in Courts and Tribunals" (Courts of New Zealand (Chief Justice), Original, 2023-12-07), safelegalai.com/regulation/nz/nz-courts-generative-ai-guidelines (accessed 2026-10-07). Data: CC BY 4.0.

More official documents in New Zealand