Judge Disqualifies Legal Teams After AI Use Leads to Fake Case Citations
Court finds lawyers relied on unverified AI-generated research, resulting in fabricated legal references.
Staff WriterJun 10, 2026, 10:52 AMA federal judge in Mississippi has disqualified lawyers on both sides of a contract dispute after finding that their failure to verify AI-generated research led to fabricated legal citations in court filings.
In an order, US District Judge Sharion Aycock in Aberdeen, Mississippi, said attorneys for both the plaintiff and the defendant had acknowledged that citation errors in recent filings stemmed from the use of artificial intelligence tools.
“This case presents the court with an unusual scenario — attorneys for both litigants engaged in similar sanctionable conduct,” Aycock wrote. At a hearing, she added, the lawyers “expressed embarrassment and apologised to the court”.
Both sides will now need to appoint new counsel. The judge said that while lawyers may use AI tools, they are required to verify that all material submitted to the court is accurate.
Aycock barred the lawyers directly responsible for using AI in legal research or drafting the disputed filings — Kathleen Wilson and Kathryn Williams — from appearing in the Northern District of Mississippi for two years. Wilson was fined $2,500, and Williams $3,500.
Two other lawyers, Shauncey Hunter Ridgeway and Mark McClinton, who served as local counsel and were not directly involved in drafting the filings, were each ordered to pay $1,000.
Wilson, Ridgeway, Williams and McClinton did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The case concerns a contract dispute over legal fees involving the city of Aberdeen. Representatives for the city and the plaintiff also did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
State and federal judges in the US have increasingly sanctioned lawyers for misusing artificial intelligence tools that can generate false case citations, misquote the law or produce non-existent legal authorities.
“In an era of rampant unverified AI usage within the legal field, this case presents a prime example of the risk associated with serving as a rubber stamp when acting as local counsel,” Aycock wrote in Monday’s order.
The judge said her order would be referred to attorney disciplinary bodies in the states where the four lawyers are licensed.
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