Federal judge in Puerto Rico fines lawyers $24K for AI-generated fake citations

A federal judge in Puerto Rico has sanctioned two plaintiffs’ lawyers for filing court documents containing at least 55 defective case citations in a FIFA lawsuit, ordering them to pay $24,400 in legal fees to opposing counsel. Chief U.S. District Judge Raúl Arias-Marxuach suggested the attorneys likely used AI to prepare their filings despite their denials, highlighting the growing judicial scrutiny of artificial intelligence misuse in legal practice.

What you should know: The sanctioned attorneys, José Olmo-Rodríguez and Ibrahim Reyes, represent the Puerto Rico Soccer League in a lawsuit claiming FIFA, soccer’s world governing body, conspired to restrict sanctioned tournaments and matches in Puerto Rico.

• The lawyers denied using AI to prepare their filings, arguing their errors were “inadvertent, minor, and did not prejudice the court or defendants.”
• Judge Arias-Marxuach rejected their defense, stating “the sheer number of inaccurate or nonexistent citations suggests otherwise.”

The big picture: This case represents part of a broader trend of judges imposing sanctions on attorneys accused of misusing AI technology by failing to properly vet its output.

• Judicial scrutiny of artificial intelligence in legal practice has increased rapidly as more lawyers face accusations of AI misuse.
• Judges have fined attorneys or levied other sanctions in dozens of similar cases across the country.

Key details: The judge reduced the original fee request after finding some billing entries lacked sufficient information to justify the charges.

• Defense lawyers initially sought nearly $60,000 in fees, but Arias-Marxuach found no precedent for such a high amount in AI-related sanctions cases.
• Paul Weiss was awarded $8,425 in fees, while Sidley Austin received $4,435.
• The judge applied billing rates reflecting Puerto Rico practices rather than those typical for New York and other major markets.

Why this matters: The sanctions serve as a warning to attorneys about the risks of improperly using AI tools in legal work.

• Arias-Marxuach said he hoped the sanctions “will deter plaintiffs’ counsel, as well as other attorneys practicing in this district, from engaging in similar misbehavior in the future.”
• The case underscores the importance of human oversight when using AI-generated content in professional legal settings.