Some lawyers use AI tools to draft petitions and arguments: What Supreme Court said about this?
The Global AI Impact Summit-2026 is underway at Bharat Mandapam in the capital, Delhi. Meanwhile, the country's Supreme Court, located just a short distance from Bharat Mandapam, has expressed serious concern about its use.
'A dangerous trend'
The Supreme Court has expressed serious concern about the use of artificial intelligence in drafting petitions. A bench headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant called it a "dangerous trend." He stated that the court has been provided with shocking information.
During a hearing in the Supreme Court, CJI Surya Kant stated that some lawyers are now using AI tools to draft petitions and arguments. The result of this use of AI is that the court is being cited with judgments and precedents that do not actually exist.
'Petitions cite cases that do not exist'
Justice B.V. Nagarathna, who was part of the bench, strongly commented on this, saying that the petition cited a case called "Mercy vs. Mankind," but such a case does not exist. CJI Surya Kant further stated that a similar case had come before Justice Dipankar Datta, where the examples given were also incorrect.
'Such negligence could be considered a serious professional lapse'
Justice Nagarathna also clarified that in some cases, lawyers are citing actual Supreme Court cases, but the paragraphs or conclusions cited are not in the actual judgment. The Supreme Court clearly indicated that such negligence could be considered a serious professional lapse in the future.
'Use of AI is a dangerous trend'
The Supreme Court's observations clearly demonstrate that factless and misleading drafts generated using AI can mislead the judicial process and even question the credibility of justice. Describing this trend as dangerous, the Supreme Court stated that lawyers have a responsibility to personally verify every argument presented in court.