AI Hallucination Cases

This database tracks legal decisions1 I.e., all documents where the use of AI, whether established or merely alleged, is addressed in more than a passing reference by the court or tribunal.

Notably, this does not cover mere allegations of hallucinations, but only cases where the court or tribunal has explicitly found (or implied) that a party relied on hallucinated content or material.

As an exception, the database also covers some judicial decisions where AI use was alleged but not confirmed. This is a judgment call on my part.
in cases where generative AI produced hallucinated content – typically fake citations, but also other types of AI-generated arguments. It does not track the (necessarily wider) universe of all fake citations or use of AI in court filings.

While seeking to be exhaustive (558 cases identified so far), it is a work in progress and will expand as new examples emerge. This database has been featured in news media, and indeed in several decisions dealing with hallucinated material.2 Examples of media coverage include:
- M. Hiltzik, AI 'hallucinations' are a growing problem for the legal profession (LA Times, 22 May 2025)
- E. Volokh, "AI Hallucination Cases," from Courts All Over the World (Volokh Conspiracy, 18 May 2025)
- J-.M. Manach, "Il génère des plaidoiries par IA, et en recense 160 ayant « halluciné » depuis 2023" (Next, 1 July 2025) - J. Koebler & J. Roscoe, "18 Lawyers Caught Using AI Explain Why They Did It (404 Media, 30 September 2025)

If you have any questions about the database, a FAQ is available here.
And if you know of a case that should be included, feel free to contact me.3 (Readers may also be interested in this project regarding AI use in academic papers.)

Based on this database, I have developed an automated reference checker that also detects hallucinations: PelAIkan. Check the Reports Report icon in the database for examples, and reach out to me for a demo.

For weekly takes on cases like these, and what they mean for legal practice, subscribe to Artificial Authority.

Click to Download CSV
Last updated: 22 May 2026
State
Party
Nature – Category
Nature – Subcategory

Case Court / Jurisdiction Date ▼ Party Using AI AI Tool Nature of Hallucination Outcome / Sanction Monetary Penalty Details Report(s)
Sherwood v. County of Botetourt, Virginia, et al. W.D. Virginia (USA) 20 May 2026 Lawyer Implied
Fabricated Case Law (4)
Misrepresented Case Law (2), Legal Norm (1)
Chakma v. Sushi Katsuei, Inc. S.D. New York (USA) 19 May 2026 Lawyer LexisNexis AI
Fabricated Doctrinal Work (1)
Misrepresented Case Law (1)
Monetary Sanction 2712 USD
Herbert Brooks v. Lowes Home Centers LLC W.D. Louisiana (USA) 18 May 2026 Lawyer Implied
False Quotes Case Law (7)
Monetary Sanction; CLE 1000 USD
Report
Memorandum in Limine

Order to show cause is here.

Source: Volokh
Glenn Wilder and Others v. President & Fellows of Harvard College and Others SC Massachussetts (USA) 18 May 2026 Lawyer MX2.law
Fabricated Case Law (1)
Monetary Sanction 1000 USD
Source: Robert Freund
Nikko D’Ambrosio v. Meta Platforms Inc. CA 7th Cir. (USA) 15 May 2026 Lawyer Implied
Fabricated Legal Norm (1)
False Quotes Case Law (1)
Misrepresented Legal Norm (2)
Order to Show Cause
Source: Robert Freund
In the Matter of Janelle Melissa Lewis, an attorney and counselor-at-law App. Div. 1st Dept (NY) (USA) 14 May 2026 Lawyer Implied
Fabricated Case Law (1)
Monetary Sanction; Bar Suspension 1500 USD
Source: Jesse Schaefer
Jane Doe 1, et al. v. Mount Saint Mary High School Corporation W.D. Oklahoma (USA) 13 May 2026 Lawyer Unidentified
Fabricated Case Law (1)
False Quotes Case Law (1)
Misrepresented Case Law (1)
Public reprimand; Notice to client; Bar Self-Referral
Source: Jesse Schaefer
Joseph Guy v. AFGE N.D. California (USA) 13 May 2026 Lawyer Claude
False Quotes Case Law (3)
Order to Explain

Counsel's subsequent explanation can be found here.

Henri Giovani Morales Jimenez v. Christopher Shanahan E.D. New York (USA) 12 May 2026 Lawyer Implied
Fabricated Case Law (1)
Outdated Advice Overturned Case Law (1)
Admonishment
Jacobs v. Timberlake CA Louisiana (5d) (USA) 12 May 2026 Lawyer Implied
Fabricated Case Law (1)
Order to Show Cause
DeVore v. McCombie N.D. Illinois (USA) 11 May 2026 Lawyer Implied
Fabricated Case Law (1)
Misrepresented Case Law (1)
Order to Explain
William Louis Armstrong, III v. City of Milwaukee E.D. Wisconsin (USA) 11 May 2026 Lawyer Implied
Fabricated Case Law (1)
Court granted motion to file corrected reply brief, found no prejudice

The County's original reply brief included a fictitious case citation. The County discovered and filed a corrected brief the same day; the Court allowed the correction, found no prejudice, and declined to impose sanctions.

Coomer v. Lindell/MyPillow, Inc. (2) D. Colorado (USA) 7 May 2026 Lawyer Unidentified
Misrepresented Case Law (1)
Monetary Order 5000 USD

Order to Show Cause is here.

Source: Volokh
Kristina Crist v. Roy Chris West, et al. W.D. Oklahoma (USA) 7 May 2026 Lawyer Unidentified
Fabricated Case Law (1)
Misrepresented Case Law (1)
Public reprimand; Notice to client; Monetary Sanction 250 USD
Source: Jesse Schaefer
Song Dow Lee, et al. v. HSBC Bank USA, National Association, et al. C.D. California (USA) 7 May 2026 Lawyer Implied
Fabricated Case Law (1)
Misrepresented Case Law (1)
Order to Show Cause
Gregoire v. Board of Trustees of SF BART N.D. California (USA) 6 May 2026 Lawyer Implied
Fabricated Case Law (1)
Monetary Sanction; Serve Order on client and Bar; CLE 1000 USD

Order to Show Cause is here. Counsel failed to answer.

Source: Robert Freund
Jessica Fuller v. Hyde School, et al. D. Maine (USA) 5 May 2026 Lawyer Claude or ChatGPT
Fabricated Case Law (1)
False Quotes Case Law (1)
Misrepresented Case Law (1)
CLE; Firm procedures and certification; Serve Order to plaintiff; Brief struck
Moore v. MC Architects Inc., et al. D. Hawai'i (USA) 5 May 2026 Lawyer Unidentified
Fabricated Case Law (1)
Monetary Sanction 1000 USD
Source: Jesse Schaefer
Van Deel v. A-Plus Contracting, LLC Missouri CA (USA) 5 May 2026 Lawyer Implied
Fabricated Case Law (2)
Source: Jesse Schaefer
Barber v. Morawa CA Michigan (USA) 5 May 2026 Lawyer Claude, ChatGPT, Westlaw, Lexis
Fabricated Case Law (1), Exhibits or Submissions (1)
Admonishment in court

See recording of oral hearing from 5 May 2026.

Regan Wilkes, et al. v. Canyons School District, et al. D. Utah (USA) 4 May 2026 Lawyer Implied
Fabricated Case Law (3)
Misrepresented Case Law (1)
Order to Show Cause 7000 USD

Order to Show Cause is here.

Richard Paul Smith v. Verra Mobility Corporation et al. M.D. Florida (USA) 1 May 2026 Lawyer ChatGPT
Fabricated Case Law (3)
Misrepresented Case Law (1)
Order to Notify Client

Order to Show Cause is here.

Johnny Fuselier v. John S. Riscassi S.D. Mississippi (USA) 1 May 2026 Lawyer Implied
Fabricated Case Law (1)
False Quotes Case Law (1)
Misrepresented Case Law (1)
Order to Show Cause
Carpenters’ Regional Council v Wealthridge Construction Ltd et al. Ontario LRB (Canada) 1 May 2026 Lawyer Unidentified
Fabricated Case Law (1)
Source: Courtready
Braun v. Day N.D. Illinois (USA) 30 April 2026 Lawyer Implied
Fabricated Case Law (3)
Show Cause Order
Report
Plaintiff's Motion to Compel
Fadi El Bitar v. Julio Hernandez W.D. Washington (USA) 30 April 2026 Lawyer Implied
False Quotes Case Law (2)
Order to Show Cause
Superb Motors Inc. et al. v. Anthony Deo et al. E.D. New York (USA) 30 April 2026 Lawyer Implied
Fabricated Case Law (2)
Monetary Sanction 1500 USD
Report
Defendant's Memorandum of Law

In his Response to the Order to Show Cause (available here), Counsel blamed the incident on virus and malwares allegedly impacting his computer.

Source: Jesse Schaefer
Sai Malena Jimenez-Fogarty v. Thomas Fogarty et al. S.D. New York (USA) 29 April 2026 Lawyer LexisNexis
Fabricated Case Law (7)
Monetary Sanction; Order to Notice Client 2500 USD
Report
Plaintiff's First Opp.
Report
Plaintiff's Second Opp.
Source: Robert Freund
Justin Spiehs v. Erik Smith D. Kansas (USA) 29 April 2026 Lawyer Implied
False Quotes Case Law (1)
Warning
Source: Jesse Schaefer
Amparo Trejo v. Miguel Angel Amaya Hernandez CA Maryland (USA) 29 April 2026 Lawyer Implied
Fabricated Case Law (3)
Brief Partly Struck
Jane Doe v. Baltimore City Board of School Commissioners D. Maryland (USA) 29 April 2026 Lawyer Implied
Fabricated Case Law (1)
Anthony C. Hill v. Workday, Inc. (2) N.D. California (USA) 28 April 2026 Lawyer CoCounsel
Fabricated Case Law (1)
Misrepresented Case Law (1)
Admonishment; Monetary Fine; 4 hours live CLE; Order Circulation 1001 USD
Tekoma Chaney v. Transdev Services Inc. et al. C.D. California (USA) 28 April 2026 Lawyer LexisNexis+ (Protégé)
Fabricated Case Law (3)
Monetary Sanction; Reporting to other courts 2500 USD
Tunstall v. Alabama Department of Corrections N.D. Alabama (USA) 28 April 2026 Lawyer Implied
False Quotes Case Law (1)
Admonishment
Source: Jesse Schaefer
Laurie Ibach and Mark Stewart v. Bruce Stewart SC Alabama (USA) 24 April 2026 Lawyer Unidentified
Fabricated Case Law (5)
False Quotes Case Law (3)
Adverse Costs Order; Doubled Costs; Filing Prohibition; Bar Referral 17200 USD
Source: Robert Freund
IN RE PAULA M. MILLER, Relator AC Texas (USA) 23 April 2026 Lawyer Implied Warning

Concurring opinion noted the mandamus petition contained attributions and quotations to caselaw that strongly appear to be AI-fabricated hallucinations; court emphasized counsel must verify AI research and warned of potential corrective measures (striking briefs, reporting to State Bar).

Mrs Sabrena Rodney v Gee'z Micro Bar & Pitstop & Others County Court at Dudley (UK) 23 April 2026 Lawyer Unidentified
Misrepresented Case Law (4), other (1)
SRA Referral
Krista C. Geddes v. LoanCare, LLC, et al. E.D. California (USA) 22 April 2026 Lawyer Implied
False Quotes Case Law (2)
Monetary Sanction; Bar Referral 1000 USD
Carol L. Williams v. Tracy Honl CA Oregon (USA) 22 April 2026 Lawyer Unidentified
Fabricated Case Law (1)
False Quotes Case Law (1)
Misrepresented Case Law (3)
Brief Struck; Adverse Costs Order 8044 USD
Primerica Life Insurance Company v. Daniel Vett Finlayson; Michelle Johnson D. Utah (USA) 22 April 2026 Lawyer Implied
Fabricated Case Law (1)
False Quotes Case Law (1)
Warning
Source: Jesse Schaefer
Yanling Zhang v. Yanhui Zhang SC Nevada (USA) 22 April 2026 Lawyer Implied
Fabricated Case Law (2)
Misrepresented Case Law (2)
Monetary Fine; Bar Referral; Refusal to file corrected brief 250 USD

Order to Show Cause is here.

In re: María V. Irizarry Centeno; Anissa M. Bonilla Irizarry TS Puerto Rico (USA) 21 April 2026 Lawyer Implied
Fabricated Case Law (6)
Admonishment 1000 USD
Bunce v. Visual Technology Innovations (2) E.D. Pennsylvania (USA) 20 April 2026 Lawyer Unidentified
Fabricated Case Law (1)
Misrepresented Case Law (1)
Monetary Sanction, Additional CLE 5000 USD
Report
Motion for sanctions
Source: Volokh
In re Prince Global Holdings Limited, et al. S.D. New York (Bankruptcy) (USA) 18 April 2026 Lawyer Unidentified
Fabricated Case Law (2)
False Quotes Case Law (1)
Misrepresented Case Law (1)
Firm apologised

Sullivan & Cromwell acknowledged that its April 9, 2026 Motion contained AI-generated inaccuracies including fabricated and misquoted case citations. The firm apologized, identified and corrected the errors in Schedule A, undertook remedial measures, and filed corrected papers. The issue was brought to the firm's attention by opposing counsel (Boies Schiller Flexner).

Robert Harris v. Elementis Specialties, Inc. C.D. California (USA) 17 April 2026 Lawyer Unidentified
Fabricated Case Law (1)
Misrepresented Case Law (1)
Warning
Jamie Lee Saunders v. Albertsons/Safeway, LLC D. Colorado (USA) 16 April 2026 Lawyer Unidentified
Fabricated Case Law (1)
Warning
Report
Motion for costs
Source: Jesse Schaefer
Cynthia White v. Walmart, Inc. S.D. Indiana (USA) 14 April 2026 Lawyer Unidentified
Fabricated Exhibits or Submissions (1)
Misrepresented Exhibits or Submissions (1)
Warning
Source: Robert Freund
Langen v. The Owners, Strata Plan EPS5455 BC CRT (Canada) 14 April 2026 Lawyer Implied
False Quotes Case Law (1)
Misrepresented Case Law (1)
Source: Courtready
Mutzarei Hashmal v. Beer Ya'akov Ashdod Magistrate Court (Israel) 13 April 2026 Lawyer Unidentified
Fabricated Legal Norm (1)
Monetary Sanction 5000 ILS
Bruno Roberto Rodriguez v. Kathryn Louise Rodriguez CA Florida 6th (USA) 10 April 2026 Lawyer Unidentified
Fabricated Case Law (1)
Misrepresented Case Law (1)
Order to Show Cause