Legal AI incidents in the US federal courts
As of 2026-10-07, the tracker records 53 incidents in the US federal courts where AI misuse affected legal proceedings, from 2023-06-22 to 2026-09-29. 13 have a recorded regulatory or disciplinary disposition and 18 records carry a monetary penalty.
- 53
- incidents
- 13
- regulatory outcomes
- 18
- monetary penalties
- 18
- sanctions outcomes
- 2026-09-29
- latest decision
| Case | Jurisdiction | Who | AI tool | Consequence | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hill v. Foundation Media LLC, No. 1:25-cv-05947 (AS) (S.D.N.Y. 2026)United States District Court for the Southern District of New York | US-FED | Lawyer | Harvey (original version, potentially supplemented by updates collectively referred to as Harvey 2.0) | Warning | — | |
| Aguilar v. The Crawford Group, Inc., No. 1:25-cv-12395-AK (D. Mass. 2026)United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts | US-FED | Lawyer | AI (unspecified enterprise-level tool) | Sanctions | — | |
| Chirece C. v. Commissioner of Social Security, No. 25-11554 (E.D. Mich. 2026)United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan | US-FED | Lawyer | Generative AI (admitted; tool unnamed) | Fine | US$500 | |
| Zhejiang Dingli Machinery Co. v. United States, Ct. No. 24-00221-MMB (Ct. Int'l Trade 2026)United States Court of International Trade | US-FED | Lawyer | — | Pending | — | |
| Carter v. City of Buffalo, No. 25-CV-740 (W.D.N.Y.)US District Court, Western District of New York | US-FED | Litigant in person | — | Warning | — | |
| G.P. v. Jose Hernandez Arevalo, No. C26-284-KKE (W.D. Wash.)US District Court, Western District of Washington | US-FED | Lawyer | — | Warning | — | |
| Falkenstein v. Niles, No. 2:26-cv-07078-SB-PD (C.D. Cal.)US District Court, Central District of California | US-FED | Lawyer | — | Pending | — | |
| Booker v. The Kroger Co., No. 1:26-cv-02006-SDG (N.D. Ga.)US District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, Atlanta Division | US-FED | Lawyer | — | Fine | US$8,000 | |
| Adams v. Matrix Providers, No. 1:23-cv-01996 (D. Colo.)US District Court for the District of Colorado | US-FED | Lawyer | — | Fine | US$1,000 | |
| Ashmeade v. Amazon.com Services LLC, No. 7:23-cv-04331-KMK-VR (S.D.N.Y.)US District Court, Southern District of New York | US-FED | Litigant in person | — | Warning | — | |
| James v. Conley, No. 1:23-cv-24467 (S.D. Fla.)US District Court for the Southern District of Florida (Magistrate Judge Elfenbein, report and recommendation) | US-FED | Lawyer | — | Pending | — | |
| Williams v. Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport Board, No. 4:26-cv-00433-P (N.D. Tex.)US District Court, Northern District of Texas | US-FED | Lawyer | — | Warning | — | |
| Johnson v. Nationstar Mortgage LLC, No. 1:25-cv-00855-JRR (D. Md.)US District Court, District of Maryland | US-FED | Litigant in person | generative AI (suspected by court) | Warning | — | |
| Potterf v. Wessels, No. 1:26-cv-10860-MFL-PTM (E.D. Mich.)US District Court, Eastern District of Michigan | US-FED | Litigant in person | artificial intelligence (admitted by litigants) | Warning | — | |
| Shelbert v. Baxter International, Inc., No. 1:26-cv-06266 (N.D. Ill.)US District Court, Northern District of Illinois | US-FED | Lawyer | — | Warning | — | |
| Turgeon v. FHLMC, No. 1:25-cv-00510-SM-TSM (D.N.H.)US District Court, District of New Hampshire | US-FED | Litigant in person | — | Other | — | |
| Ruiz v. Magellan Financial & Insurance Services, No. CV-23-02090-PHX-DWL (D. Ariz.)US District Court for the District of Arizona | US-FED | Lawyer | ChatGPT (admitted by counsel) | Sanctions | — | |
| Disruptive Resources, LLC v. Ballistic Barrier Products Inc., No. 1:24-cv-00321-JCG (D. Del.)US District Court for the District of Delaware (Judge Jennifer Choe-Groves, sitting by designation) | US-FED | Lawyer | Strongsuit | Warning | — | |
| Full Standard Properties v. SJ 6070, No. 5:25-cv-09451 (N.D. Cal.)US District Court for the Northern District of California | US-FED | Lawyer | — | Costs order | US$14,500 | |
| Guerra-Quezada v. United States (with Guerra-Vasquez v. United States), Nos. 25-10372 and 25-10555 (5th Cir.)US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit | US-FED | Lawyer | — | Warning | — | |
| Chapman v. City of Priceville, No. 5:26-cv-84-HDM (N.D. Ala.)US District Court for the Northern District of Alabama | US-FED | Lawyer | — | Sanctions | — | |
| In re BFI Waste Systems of Tennessee (City of Murfreesboro v. BFI), No. 3:22-cv-00605 (M.D. Tenn.)US District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee, Nashville Division | US-FED | Lawyer | — | Sanctions | US$1,500 | |
| Booker v. U.S. Bank National Association (In re Booker), No. 3:25-cv-01205-VDO (D. Conn.)US District Court for the District of Connecticut | US-FED | Litigant in person | — | Warning | — | |
| Barteca Holdings LLC v. Tacobarn Newtown LLC, No. 3:26-cv-00250 (D. Conn.)US District Court for the District of Connecticut | US-FED | Lawyer | Open Law, then Claude and ChatGPT (per counsel) | Sanctions | US$3,500 · Court referred counsel to the state disciplinary authority in its Order Imposing Sanctions (ECF 43). No disposi… | |
| De Ford v. Koutoulas, No. 6:22-cv-652-PGB-DCI (M.D. Fla.)US District Court for the Middle District of Florida, Orlando Division | US-FED | Litigant in person | ChatGPT (per the defendant's public statements) | Sanctions | — | |
| Forney v. Township of Cary, North Carolina, No. 5:25-CV-00738-M (E.D.N.C.)US District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina | US-FED | Lawyer | — | Costs order | Chief Judge Myers referred counsel to the North Carolina State Bar. No disposition on record. | |
| In re Brian E. Mitchell, USPTO Proceeding No. D2026-16US Patent and Trademark Office, Office of Enrollment and Discipline | US-FED | Lawyer | — | Other | Public reprimand by settlement for violations of 37 CFR 11.101, 11.103, 11.804(c) and 11.804(d); settlement exe… | |
| Lichfield v. Kubler; Netflix, Inc., No. 25-4135 (10th Cir.)US Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit | US-FED | Lawyer | — | Warning | — | |
| LeDoux v. Outliers, Inc., No. 3:24-cv-05808-TMC (W.D. Wash.)US District Court for the Western District of Washington, Tacoma | US-FED | Lawyer | ChatGPT and Claude (per counsel's sworn declaration) | Sanctions | US$3,000 | |
| In re Rosslyn2016, LLC, No. 25-34507 (Bankr. S.D. Tex.)US Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas, Houston Division | US-FED | Lawyer | Westlaw AI tools (per counsel, who denied using ChatGPT) | Sanctions | US$29,877 | |
| Akerlund v. Atlas Air, Inc. (Estate of Caviness v. Atlas Air), No. 24-11033 (11th Cir.)US Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit | US-FED | Lawyer | — | Regulatory referral | The Chief Judge referred counsel to the Committee under Addendum Eight, Rule 2(C) of the court's rules. No disp… | |
| Cartagena v. Dixon; Dixon v. Cartagena, Nos. 1:25-cv-03552 and 1:25-cv-05144 (S.D.N.Y.)unverifiedUS District Court for the Southern District of New York (Magistrate Judge Jennifer Willis) | US-FED | Lawyer | — | Regulatory referral | The court added the new violations to an existing referral of counsel to the SDNY Grievance Committee. No dispo… | |
| Parnell v. Florida Department of Corrections, No. 25-11166 (11th Cir.)US Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit | US-FED | Lawyer | — | Regulatory referral | Counsel referred to the Committee on Lawyer Qualifications and Conduct. No disposition on record. | |
| Lnu v. Blanche, No. 24-4790 (9th Cir.)US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit | US-FED | Not recorded | — | Suspension | US$5,000 · The Ninth Circuit ordered the Clerk to serve its disciplinary order on the State Bar of California and any othe… | |
| In re Prince Global Holdings Ltd., No. 26-10769 (MG) (Bankr. S.D.N.Y.), Sullivan & Cromwell AI-citation disclosureUS Bankruptcy Court, Southern District of New York (Chief Judge Martin Glenn) | US-FED | Firm | — | Other | — | |
| McCarthy v. U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (3d Cir. 2026), No. 24-2704US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit | US-FED | Not recorded | AI (unspecified) | Warning | — | |
| Couvrette v. Wisnovsky, No. 1:21-cv-00157-CL (D. Or.)US District Court, District of Oregon (Medford Division) | US-FED | Not recorded | — | Sanctions | US$110,204 · The court directed the Clerk to transmit its 12 December 2025 sanctions order to the Oregon State Bar (Brigandi… | |
| Johnson v. Dunn, No. 2:21-cv-01701-AMM (N.D. Ala.), 792 F. Supp. 3d 1241US District Court, Northern District of Alabama (Southern Division) | US-FED | Lawyer | ChatGPT | Sanctions | Order served on the bar for further proceedings as appropriate; reciprocal Oklahoma discipline of Reeves is tra… | |
| Coomer v. Lindell, No. 1:22-cv-01129 (D. Colo.)US District Court, District of Colorado | US-FED | Not recorded | — | Sanctions | US$6,000 | |
| Mid Central Operating Engineers Health and Welfare Fund v. HoosierVac LLC, No. 2:24-cv-00326-JPH-MJD (S.D. Ind.)US District Court, Southern District of Indiana (Terre Haute Division) | US-FED | Lawyer | — | Sanctions | US$6,000 · Referred for consideration of further discipline; outcome of disciplinary reference not confirmed | |
| Lacey v. State Farm General Insurance Co., No. 2:24-cv-05205-FMO-MAA (C.D. Cal.), Order of Special Master (Ellis George LLP and K&L Gates LLP)US District Court, Central District of California (Special Master Michael R. Wilner, US Magistrate Judge, ret.) | US-FED | Lawyer | CoCounsel, Westlaw Precision and Google Gemini (per counsel's sworn declaration) | Sanctions | US$31,100 | |
| Benjamin v. Costco Wholesale Corp., No. 2:24-cv-7399 (LGD) (E.D.N.Y.)US District Court, Eastern District of New York | US-FED | Lawyer | ChatOn | Fine | US$1,000 | |
| Bevins v. Colgate-Palmolive Co., No. 2:25-cv-00576-MMB (E.D. Pa.)US District Court, Eastern District of Pennsylvania | US-FED | Lawyer | — | Sanctions | Clerk directed to serve the memorandum and accompanying order on both bars; no further disposition confirmed | |
| Dehghani v. Castro, No. 2:25-cv-00052-MIS-DLM (D.N.M.)US District Court, District of New Mexico | US-FED | Lawyer | — | Sanctions | US$1,500 · Court ordered self-report with copy of order; bar dispositions not confirmed | |
| Wadsworth v. Walmart, Inc., 348 F.R.D. 489 (D. Wyo. 2025)US District Court, District of Wyoming | US-FED | Not recorded | Morgan & Morgan internal AI tool (MX2.law) | Sanctions | US$5,000 | |
| Kohls v. Ellison, No. 0:24-cv-03754 (D. Minn.)US District Court, District of Minnesota | US-FED | Not recorded | GPT-4o | Other | — | |
| Gauthier v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., No. 1:23-CV-281 (E.D. Tex.)US District Court, Eastern District of Texas (Beaumont Division) | US-FED | Not recorded | Claude (Anthropic) | Sanctions | US$2,000 | |
| Dukuray v. Experian Information Solutions, No. 23 Civ. 9043 (AT) (GS) (S.D.N.Y.)US District Court, Southern District of New York | US-FED | Litigant in person | ChatGPT (suggested by defendants; court found the suggestion had merit, plaintiff did not confirm) | Warning | — | |
| United States v. Cohen, No. 18-CR-602 (JMF) (S.D.N.Y.)US District Court, Southern District of New York | US-FED | Lawyer | Google Bard | Other | — | |
| Park v. Kim, 91 F.4th 610 (2d Cir. 2024)US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit | US-FED | Not recorded | ChatGPT (OpenAI) | Regulatory referral | While affirming the dismissal on the merits, the court referred Attorney Jae S. Lee to its Grievance Panel unde… | |
| Morgan v. Community Against Violence, No. 1:23-cv-00353-WPJ/JMR (D.N.M.)US District Court, District of New Mexico | US-FED | Litigant in person | — | Warning | — | |
| Thomas v. Pangburn, No. 4:23-cv-00046-RSB-CLR (CV423-046) (S.D. Ga.)US District Court, Southern District of Georgia (Savannah Division) | US-FED | Litigant in person | — | Dismissal | — | |
| Mata v Avianca, Inc.US District Court, Southern District of New York | US-FED | Not recorded | ChatGPT | Sanctions | US$5,000 |
Cite as: SafeLegalAI Global Legal AI Incident Tracker, United States (federal) view, safelegalai.com/tracker/us-federal (accessed 2026-10-07). Data CC BY 4.0.
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