California Signs First-of-Its-Kind Law Governing Lawyers’ Use of AI

California has enacted first-of-its-kind legislation governing lawyers’ use of generative artificial intelligence in their work, barring them from delegating the practice of law to AI and from entering confidential or personal information into an AI tool.

Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the bill, SB 574, on Wednesday, codifying and expanding existing state court rules. The law requires lawyers to verify all citations before filing briefs in court, including those generated by AI tools. It also requires at least one lawyer to sign every court filing in their individual name, unless a party is representing themselves without a lawyer.

The new law imposes similar restrictions on arbitrators, barring them from delegating their decision-making process to AI tools and from relying on AI-generated information without disclosing its use to the parties involved in the case. It also sets out parameters for courts to impose sanctions for violations.

Courts across the country have grappled with lawyers’ increasing use of generative AI in legal filings, which has sometimes resulted in hallucinated or incorrectly interpreted citations to previous case law. In California, the Tax Tribunal has considered whether to adopt its own rules governing AI use in the cases it hears. In the past two months, federal courts have also warned or sanctioned lawyers in cases involving bias, bankruptcy and the Justice Department.

The legislation comes amid growing efforts by courts and regulators to establish rules for the use of AI in legal proceedings, while maintaining lawyers’ responsibility for the accuracy and integrity of their work.