New Mexico lawyer fined for using ChatGPT to fabricate murder appeal testimony

The New Mexico Supreme Court has held attorney Stephen Aarons in contempt and ordered him to pay a $5,000 fine after he submitted a legal brief containing fabricated information generated by ChatGPT. The brief, intended for the murder appeal of Oscar Renee Sandoval, included “false testimony from wholly fabricated witnesses” and made-up police statements.

Aarons, a private attorney based in Santa Fe, stated he used the OpenAI chatbot to condense the trial record and claimed he did not realize the extent of AI “hallucinations.” However, the court noted that the lawyer “demonstrated a lack of remorse and a lack of concern for his client.”

In addition to the fine, the matter will be referred to an attorney disciplinary board for further investigation. The incident highlights growing concerns regarding the use of generative AI in legal proceedings, as multiple lawyers have faced sanctions for submitting documents containing non-existent case law or misquoted legal provisions.