ChatGPT and the Legal Profession
Over the last few weeks, multiple clients have asked us whether ChatGPT and artificial intelligence programs are changing our legal practice. The New York Times recently reported on an attorney who relied on ChatGPT for his legal research - and caused extreme harm to both his reputation and his client.
The lawsuit began like so many others: A man named Roberto Mata sued the airline Avianca, saying he was injured when a metal serving cart struck his knee during a flight to Kennedy International Airport in New York.
When Avianca asked a Manhattan federal judge to toss out the case, Mr. Mata’s lawyers vehemently objected, submitting a 10-page brief that cited more than half a dozen relevant court decisions. There was Martinez v. Delta Air Lines, Zicherman v. Korean Air Lines and, of course, Varghese v. China Southern Airlines, with its learned discussion of federal law and “the tolling effect of the automatic stay on a statute of limitations.”
There was just one hitch: No one — not the airline’s lawyers, not even the judge himself — could find the decisions or the quotations cited and summarized in the brief.
That was because ChatGPT had invented everything.
This cautionary tale is yet another example of the limitations of technologies like ChatGPT. While there are certainly benefits to tools like artificial intelligence or online legal marketplaces, it is also important to have an attorney who understands your individual concerns or your business’s unique challenges. Contact our office to discuss your needs today.